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verobatto · 4 years ago

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Destiel Chronicles

Vol. CVIII

It was a love story from the very beginning

Another Destiel Separation

(12x23)

Hello my friends and welcome to the last meta from season 13!

I would love to see the script from this episode because I always said they robbed us the goodbye scene between Cas and Dean, but well...

Let's start...

Mary and Bobby, Destiel mirror and the calm before th storm

First, we had a random werewolves hunt. In which we had a little of comedy and a sneak peek to what Jack's training is. Dean says it's a werewolves hunt and let the kid to answer they will need silver bullets. Just like a resident to his doctor in charge.

Team Free Will 2.0 working together with great results, is showing us the calm before the storm.

Jumping now to the scene between Mary and Bobby, we have here another Destiel mirror. With Mary (Dean) and Bobby (Castiel).

They come from different worlds, and once Boby starts to walk in this new universe, with Mary, he begins to embrace it. Just like Castiel did with humanity, asking in season 8 to be a hunter and to stay in Earth with Dean.

BOBBY: (...) Anyways...without an archangel, it's not like we can go back home. And I'm not sure I'd want to. I...I like it here.

We've been robbed: 1

Remember that scene in which Dean shows Sam so much faith on Jack (the faith that he took from Castiel) and thought about retirement? A happy ending? Yeah, let's cry here and struggle with the idea that we've been robbed...

DEAN: Hey, you remember...remember when you asked if we could stop it? All the evil in the world?

SAM: Yeah.

DEAN: If we could...really change things? Well, maybe with Jack, we can.

SAM: Maybe you're right. But then what will we do?

DEAN: Mm. Yeah. This. (Dean holds a beer he has been carrying and Sam looks down at his) A whole lot of this.

But on a beach somewhere, you know?

Can you imagine?

You, me, Cass, toes in the sand, couple of them little umbrella drinks. Matching Hawaiian shirts, obviously. Some hula girls.

SAM (scoffing) You talking about retiring? You?

DEAN: If I knew the world was safe? Hell, yeah. And you know why? 'Cause we freaking earned it, man.

Gif set credit @inacatastrophicmind

Dean thinks in a happy retirement with his brother and Castiel. Because this was in his heart. This was Dean's wish. And this should be his ending. He is the one saying it. They deserved that ending because they freaking earned it. Dean didn't mention Jack, because this is played as a foreshadow in which Jack will have a very important role to keep the world safe as Dean wants: Jack will be the new God.

The scene in which Jack has a nightmare and Dean goes to calm him down, we hear him talk about his own nightmares about people he couldn't save, this shows THE GUILT HERITAGE inside of him, and how this will lead him to say yes to AUMichael.

Jack follows Dean's toxic behavior

Jack goes to avenge Maggie's dead by his own, just like Dean did to face Loki. (Following Dean's toxic bwhat and not his advices).

Then we have Dean shooting at Jack by the back, as a foreshadow of how he will deceive Jack to out him inside the Ma'lak box in season 14.

The manipulative speech Lucifer gives to Jack is a parallel to the one that will give fem!AUMichael to Jack in episode 14x09. The words are similar: talks about power, their difference with humans, their supremacy over humans, and how they should be together to conquer the world because they're family.

The comparison with Star War Anakin, is to place doubts about Jack's future, because everyone knows Anakin turns into the dark side.

But then Sam praying to Jack (just like Dean to Cas) is showing us the faith Sam has on him too.

Jack revails Lucifer's true intentions and true self in a very spectacular show of his powers.

A Sacrifice for family love

Lucifer kidnaps Jack and Sam because he knows about their bond: Sam occupied in this season Lucifer's place as a father. Lucifer knows it and that's why he decided to took them with him and play a sadic game.

How Sam and Jack were willing to give their lives for each other is the same scenario of Dean giving his life and body to AUMichael to save them. Both sacrifies are for Love, FAMILY LOVE. As Michael will tell Sister Jo in 14x02.

The scenes are mixed between the church in which Jack and Sam are deliberating who will do the sacrifice and Dean about to offer his own life like the sword to Michael.

And Jack saying...

JACK: I love you. I love all of you.

Third time we see it int he show (Castiel and Mary in season 12), is telling us that had always been a family love confession. Just like Dean saying yes to Michael.

Gif credit @bennylafitte

Gif credit @hallowedbecastiel

We've been robbed: 2

The scene in which Dean starts saying he is Michael's sword, is short but very meaningful. Castiel flicks his eyes to him surprised about the offer Dean is making to that monster. He tries to stop him but Dean feels he is trapped and he has to make that sacrifice for Jack and Sam.

The fandom were heartbroken by then about Castiel's feelings, and maybe writers should make it even more noticeable in the script: I'm talking about the fact that Castiel's fall was because he fought against Heaven's Orders, that implied DEAN SAYING YES TO MICHAEL. It means, he went against destiny and embraced free will, following Dean and looking at him as a role model.

He was really angry when Dean almost say yes in season 5, if you remember that scene, Castiel literally kicked Dean's ass.

But this Castiel is different from that one in season 5. He is against that decision but even so, he remains quiet, to a side, watching the man he loves and the one for who he left everything he was for millennials, being snatched by Michael from his side.

When Michael takes control of Dean's body, Castiel can sense it, because they're bonded.

But you know, I still feel there was a scene missing: the one in which Dean says goodbye to Cas. (And I really thought there would be a kiss scene erased there... I explained this here.)

This was another lovers separation, my friends... Sighs...

To Conclude

The last episode from this season was messy and sometimes confusing. It was written by Dabb, and he tends to do that.

In the middle of the messy plot, we can talk about Destiel parallel (Mary and Bobby)

Jack mirroring Dean's toxic behavior and another lovers separation.

Hope you liked this meta, see you in the next one!

Tagging @magnificent-winged-beast @emblue-sparks @weird-dorky-little-d @michyribeiro @whyjm @legendary-destiel @a-bit-of-influence @thatwitchydestielfan @misha-moose-dean-burger-lover @lykanyouko @evvvissticante @savannadarkbaby @dea-stiel @poorreputation @bre95611 @thewolfathedoor @charlottemanchmal @neii3n @deathswaywardson @followyourenergy @dean-is-bi-till-i-die @hekatelilith-blog @avidbkwrm @anarchiana @dickpuncher365 @vampyrosa @authorsararayne @mybonsai1976 @love-neve-dies @dustythewind @wayward-winchester67 @angelwithashotgunandtrenchcoat @trashblackrainbow @deeutdutdutdoh @destiel-shipper-11 @larrem88 @charmedbycastiel @ran-savant @little-crazy-misha-minion @samoosetheshipper

@shadows-and-padlocked-hearts @mishtho @dancingtuesdaymorning @nerditoutwithbooks @mikennacac73 @justmeand-myinsight @idontwantpeopletoknowmyname @teddybeardoctor @pepevons @helevetica @isthisdestiel @dizzypinwheel @jawnlockwinchester @horsez2 @qanelyytha

@destielle @spnsmile @shippsblog @robot-feels @superlock-in-the-tardis @superduckbatrebel @2musiclover2 @madronasky @anon-non2 @cea1996 @lisafu02 @asphodelesauvage @deancasgirl777

If you want to be added or removed from this list just let me know.

If you wanna read the previous metas from this season here you have the links:

XCIII, XCIV, XCV, XCVI, XCVII, XCVIII, XCIX, C, CI, CII, CIII, CIV, CV, CVI.

#destiel #destiel chronicles #destiel meta #supernatural meta #season 13 meta #13x23 meta

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travllingbunny · 4 years ago

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The 100 7x11 Etherea

This is the episode we’ve been waiting for this whole season - and while I don’t think it’s the best episode of the season, it is certainly the most exciting one. It would be that just the fact that Bellamy is finally back on screen (and not just for a couple of minutes, but for an entire episode fully focused on him), and it was great to see him and have an episode fully devoted to him, and remember once again what an amazing actor Bob is and the presence and intensity he brings to the show. But it also turned out to be the first episode of season 7 that is a genuine game changer and that shocked the viewers with a twist that wasn’t entirely predictable.

Even though the fandom had been speculating on the so-called brainwashed Bellamy or “void Bellamy” or generally Bellamy that is for some reason the (temporary) enemy of Clarke, Octavia and the rest of the protagonists, and hoping for that storyline, with a Mockingjay-like possibilities for romantic angst between him and Clarke (especially after a photo of Bellamy in the white robe leaked early in the year, months before the season even started to air), the way it happened seems to have upset many of the fans )to quote a podcaster, “I was hoping for a brainwashed Bellamy, but not like this”). Probably because the show has Bellamy retain agency in his transformation and that it is indoctrination into a cult be more like real life and partially rooted in Bellamy’s own emotional issues, beliefs and needs, rather than taking the easier route of having him be Sci-Fi brainwashed, Winter Soldier style.

That said, I’m still not entirely sure how I feel about this episode and how good I think it is. The first half of the episode, Bellamy was very much himself, and it was focused on survival and trying to get off the planet, and the dynamic between him and Conductor Doucette - throughout the episode - seems to play into the familiar trope of two enemies, or people of opposing views, who have to spend time together, gets to argue, survive together, and eventually bond as fellow humans. This story would not be particularly interesting - not only have we seen it many times, but it feels redundant for Bellamy, who has learned to see the POV of his enemies, bond with them and see the common humanity in them, many seasons ago. It also would not have been interesting if Bellamy managed to change Doucette’s beliefs - which the audience already thinks are rubbish - as this wouldn’t tell us anything new about Bellamy and would only give development to Doucette.

But instead, what was really happening throughout this episode, under the guise of bonding with the enemy, was Bellamy’s spiritual journey - aka his indoctrination into Cadogan’s cult. The crucial part of it happens not just to his exhaustion and desperation in tough circumstances, or his companion offering him faith as a solution, but through something Bellamy actually sees in the cave, and his own visions a little later. This is where the episode becomes a lot more interesting - and also a lot more frustrating. I don’t think I’ll be sure how I feel about this until I see the rest of the season, and learn how some things from this episode are explained or followed up on. In particular, the explanation (or lack of it?) for Bellamy’s visions in this episode will pretty much determine what course the show is taking in its final season and what it is trying to be.

Whatever the explanation, the end result - which we see after Bellamy returns to Bardo - is disturbing and painful to watch. It is something we have never seen before - Bellamy himself trying to enforce a total abnegation of everything Bellamy Blake is. Which includes willingly repressing his feelings for his loved ones to the point of betraying them (and results in the most painful Bellarke reunion ever, and one of the most painful reunions of the Blake siblings). I don’t know if I’m fully buying such a huge transformation - which is one of my problems with the episode. But this is certainly quality angst, and means that the season has become much more exciting to watch.

Is it weird that such a big twist happens in episode 11, out of 16 episodes, after 10 episodes that have been mostly setup for the big plot? Yes, just like it is weird that Bellamy has been MIA before this. BTS reasons obviously affected this season a lot - if it hadn’t been for them, I think we’d have a similar storyline, but this would have happened much earlier in the season. Are 5 episodes enough to resolve this in a satisfactory way? Well, it’s certainly enough to resolve it - this is a show that has characters go from hate to love over the course of 5 episodes, has characters hook up/fall for each other after knowing each other for 2-3 episodes, the show that showed Hope’s entire 10-year relationship with her father figure in a 7 minute scene, and the show that just had this massive character transformation happen over one episode. Will it feel satisfactory and convincing - it could, if it’s well-written and if the show doesn’t waste too much time on the Sanctum plot and fully focuses on its two main characters now that one of them is finally back.

Starting from the beginning - this time, its Bob saying “Previously on”, in line with this season having different cast members saying those opening words in different episodes (Eliza in 7x01, Marie in 7x02, Luisa in 7x03, there was no previously on in 7x04, Marie in 7x05, Lindsey in 7x06, Richard in 7x07, no previously on in 7x08, Eliza in 7x09 and 7x10 - it’s a bit surprising that Eliza said it in episode 9 even though she wasn’t in it at all, but otherwise those fit characters that were strongly featured in the episode in question).

We also get yet another version of the opening titles - which start and finish with a shot of the Anomaly. Earth again makes a cameo near the end, just as it did in 7x10, though it’s in the shadow now so can’t be seen as clearly.

While 90% of the episode takes place on Etherea, it opens and ends on Bardo. The opening scene is the only one not featuring Bellamy - apart from a replayed memory. We learn that the MCap machine was damaged by Echo, and is only now operational again. Finally, a good explanation why the Disciples did not put Echo, Diyoza or Octavia - again - in MCap after they agreed to cooperate. Levitt is using it on one of the Disciples who were in the Stone Room during the explosion. I guess he was still recovering a week after, and now they are presumably trying to help him, since - as the other Conductor tells Levitt - he is suffering from PTSD. Hey, isn’t that the first time anyone has mentioned that word on the show? At least the Disciples have kept the knowledge about mental health issues, even if their ways of dealing with it are questionable at best. We learn that no one is being punished, not even for killing Anders, as the other conductor says. (Not even? Does she think that’s worse than attempted genocide? Hope didn’t even back down from it as Echo eventually did, and the two Disciples Anders called witnessed it. The Conductor may think that the consequence is more important than intent... But even so, she clearly thinks Anders’ life was more important than those of two other Disciples, who were murdered by Echo as a part of her torturing Levitt. I guess that “For all mankind” thing doesn’t mean you consider all of the people, or even all of the Disciples, equal...)

Levitt finds out what 99% of the audience was sure of anyway and goes “He’s alive!” Surprise, surprise. But Levitt, shouldn’t you say “They are alive?”? Knowing Levitt’s attachment to Octavia, he is talking about Bellamy, not about one of his colleagues, Conductor Doucette, who was also presumed dead. (Doucette, not Douchette - even though the latter would make for a good joke.)

Let’s think about why this scene exists (apart from being used as a sneak peek). Obviously it was full of exposition, but why was it important for Levitt to find out that Bellamy is alive at the same time as we learn about it? We could have just seen Bellamy falling through the Bridge to the planet of Etherea. I suppose the purpose is dual: 1) to learn that the Disciples indeed did not know Bellamy was alive and on Etherea, 2) to learn that Cadogan knew Bellamy was alive an on Etherea, at least a few hours to a day before his return, which may be important for the events of this episode.

One of the questions the fandom has been debating is, did Anders intentionally send Bellamy to Etherea to be indoctrinated? Since 7x05, I have believed that Bellamy was on Etherea, and my initial reading of the scene was that Anders made the decision to send him there - and that this was why Doucette started to beg him: “Please, sir, no”, as he wasn’t happy to be stranded there. Then I started second-guessing it, because it became increasingly obvious that Anders was dumb as a brick and unable to come up with any smart plans how to brainwash people (as we saw with HEDO - he just threatened them into compliance instead of trying to really change their minds). Now I think that sending people to Etherea may be a standard practice that Disciples do on very special occasions when they want to send someone on a spiritual journey/pilgrimage/true brainwashing that they can’t come back until they make a ‘leap of faith” (just like they use Skyring as a standard prison). Maybe this is not even something that most Disciples know, but info only reserved for Level 12s or even Level 13s. But the grenade attack was real and made Anders believe Bellamy was dead and the plan was off - as there is no reason to believe that anything before Bellamy’s last day in the cave was manipulated from Bardo.

However, that last day - with Bellamy’s visions - could have been, and it happened around the same time Cadogan would have found out from Levitt that Bellamy was alive and on Etherea. There seems to be no time differential (or too small a differential to matter) between Etherea and Bardo - just like there seems to be none between Earth and Sanctum, since Bellamy and Doucette retained their memories going from Bardo to Etherea and back, both times without a protective helmet.

Etherea, the planet

The promo for this episode made the planet look much worse and less survivable than it really seems to be. Apart from the grey filter* that the show is using to make it look worse and kind of drab and gloomy, it seems to be a perfectly nice planet, with vegetation and an OK climate - as long as you are not trying to get off the planet through the Anomaly and climbing the extremely high mountain to reach the Anomaly Stone. It’s funny that, aside from Nakara, every other planet connected by the Anomaly has better living conditions than Bardo. The Disciples obviously use Bardo just because of the facilities they’ve found there. But Skyring is a really lovely planet - its only problem is the time differential from the other habitable planets, but that would not be a problem if a big group of people just decided to live there and start a community. Sanctum is lovely, too - well, except for red sun toxin and killer insects and meat-eating trees. (Why have the Disciples mostly ignored it? Is it because of those things, or maybe they didn’t want to mix with the Primes and other Sanctumites? Or they just didn’t see a use for it?) And Etherea is another problem where people could decide to live, if they gave up going to other planets.

*The show uses different filters to make the woods around Vancouver look like different planets:

Sanctum - bright colors, lots of red during day, purple at night

Skyring - blue filter (nice planet)

Nakara - blue filter (frozen planet)

Etherea - grey filter

Earth - normal, except in S5 everywhere outside Eden - greyish yellow filter for a desolated post-Praimfaya Earth

But of course, Bellamy is definitely not interested in staying there and only wants to find a way off this planet, and Doucette, unlike Orlando, is neither serving a sentence he wants to see to the end nor is expecting the Disciples to send a team to retrieve him. This is another one of the “just two three four people on the planet” episodes, but this stay is just a few months rather than years, and spent in much harsher and most exhausting conditions during most of that time - because Bellamy never stops trying to get off the planet. There are parallels and strong contrasts to every one of those other situations:

Eden - The first few months of Clarke’s experience surviving on the desolated Earth parallel Bellamy’s months on the mountain - surviving in tough conditions (extreme heat in Clarke’s case vs extreme cold in Bellamy’s), physically and mentally exhausted to the point of breaking. There are even visually parallel shots of both of them walking with a stick or eating bugs. But the big differences are: after trying and failing to get in the bunker and after the Temple collapsed, Clarke had no way of getting off the planet or out of her current situation and reuniting with any of her loved ones. She could only survive and wait. She was all alone and only talking to Bellamy, who wasn’t there, to keep herself sane. Bellamy, OTOH, was actively trying to get off the planet and reach his loved ones all that time, and he had a companion - another adult with strong beliefs, who he talked to and who did his best to indoctrinate him. After those first few months, Clarke found Eden and met Madi, and the rest of her (mostly off-screen) life on Earth during the next 6 years was much more similar to Octavia’s life with Diyoza and Hope on Skyring.

The Garden - Unlike Bellamy, Octavia lived in a beautiful place and with someone who was already her friend and a child she came to look after, finding family she loved (rather than faith and abstract “love for all mankind”). Like Bellamy, Octavia kept trying to get off the planet and reach her sibling and her friends, which was equally difficult for a different reason, as the Anomaly entrance was deep under water (unlike Bellamy, she wouldn’t have actually able to leave the planet as she didn’t have a Conductor or codes for the Stone - but she didn’t know she needed them) - for 6 years, before she eventually gave up and settled for her peaceful life for the next 4 years and sending Bellamy a letter.

Hesperides - Like Bellamy, Echo, Gabriel and Hope wanted to get off the planet and reach their friends/family, but unlike Bellamy, they couldn’t get the codes and had to wait for 5 years, and, unlike him, they lived in lovely place. Like Bellamy, they had a devout Disciple as a companion, but there were three of them, which made it more difficult for him to indoctrinate them, no matter how much he wanted to make them Disciples, and they were the ones trying to manipulate him. They developed a friendship with him, as Bellamy did with Doucette, but while Bellamy saved Doucette when he didn’t have to anymore, Echo betrayed him and left him as expendable, and the other two eventually went along with it.

But Etherea is not just another planet for the Disciples - it is notable for what can be found in a cave on the way to the top of the mountain, which Cadogan apparently looked for and found, as a part of his pilgrimage - his own “40 days in a desert” - because, of course, he sees himself as a messiah (and, as we saw in 7x09, this is an important thing in the Bardo religion and something children are taught about in school).

Bellamy immediately learns all about Cadogan’s teachings - everything the rest of the characters took several episodes to learn about - by reading his book (”pocket propaganda from another false god”) and immediately pokes holes in it. He makes all the good points and lists most of the reasons why the Disciple faith makes no sense, including the fact that it makes no sense to be fighting for peace and end of violence by waging another war. Everything he says in the first half of the episode are things I would completely agree with. Which makes it all the more frustrating when he starts ignoring his own reasonable arguments by the end of this episode. One might say that the Disciple propaganda attacks both his heart - using his desire to find peace, an end to all the struggle and pain, and eventually, his love and memory of his mother, to ignore what his head is telling him - but they also eventually attack his head, by presenting what seems like actual physical evidence, and the end result is to ignore not just the rational objections he had, but also try to suppress his love for the most important individual people in his life.

He lists the people he loves - “Octavia, Echo, Clarke” - which is the first time Bellamy himself has used the word love for the latter two (and in fact, for anyone other than Octavia). BTW, notice that no one in the show has ever used the word “girlfriend/boyfriend” except Diyoza (when this was what she assumed Clarke was to Bellamy)? Maybe these words have fallen out of use in the post-apocalypse societies. The main characters usually talk about their “friends” or “family” (the latter not always being biological). Doucette later talks of "your family, your friends” and “your obsession with your sister and your friends” - where Echo and Clarke are both lumped into this category. Echo is not singled out as “your girlfriend” or in any other way.

Here’s the thing about Bellamy’s and Doucette’s dynamic: if this story wasn’t really about indoctrinating Bellamy, there really wouldn’t be anything there we didn’t know about Bellamy before. Of course he wouldn’t kill this random Disciple guy if he didn’t have to - and, in spite of what he tells Doucette at the start, it’s not just because he needed him to survive. Bellamy learning to see the humanity of his enemies and working with them and bonding with them is something we have seen many times: at first with Clarke, then with Lincoln, Indra, the Grounders, Kane, Echo. All the way back in season 2, he valued human lives, even from the enemy side: he opposed Murphy’s idea of killing the captive Grounder thief (while Finn summarily killed him), he angrily said he’d kill everyone in Mount Weather but then tried his best for that not to happen, after seeing the children there; even during his Pike-supporting days, he tried to persuade Pike and the others to spare the wounded Grounder warriors, in season 4 he talked Riley down from trying to assassinate Roan, and in season 5, he refused to kill the cryo frozen Eligius prisoners, and later convinced Madi to spare the Eligius convicts who were their PoW. And while Bellamy has been motivated, most of all, by personal love (particularly for his sister and Clarke), we’ve seen him save many people, including strangers or near strangers. That speech Doucette gave him about “loving all mankind” is something season 1 Bellamy needed to hear, the one who was focused just on Octavia and then just on her and the Delinquents, but Bellamy has had a massive character development since. Bellamy knows more about loving all mankind than Doucette or any of the Disciples do. Doucette says he “loves all mankind” including a total stranger - well, dude, didn’t you try to kill Bellamy at first? And the rest of what we’ve seen from Disciples is much worse. They talked the talk, but don’t walk the walk, unless they think kidnapping and torturing people and trying to break their spirit is “love”, And Anders definitely showed that he did not “love all the mankind” when he ordered a hit on Hope, or when he gave that speech in 7x10 about what disgusting “wild beats” all these non-Disciples were.

But unlike Anders, Doucette can talk in a convincing way and make decent arguments in favor of his faith to non-believers, rather than just preaching to the converted - or at least, he can appear to give decent arguments. He’s taking a page from The 100 fandom with the argument that Bellamy is so selfish and egotistical for... loving his sister and his friends and constantly fighting and sacrificing himself for them. (The 100 fandom loves making that same argument about Clarke.) Quite a skill, to make such BS argument sound convincing. He basically gives Bellamy a version of the “Love is weakness” advice - in this case, that “love is selfish” and leads to destruction and pain. And when Bellamy asks the rhetorical question, if that means that you shouldn’t love anyone - Doucette turns it around and talks of love for all mankind. But that “love” he speaks of is abstract and fake - it is impossible to love everyone. You cannot love total strangers, or people you simply don’t like - certainly not the same as you love your lover or friend or family member. You can, however, be compassionate, and value human lives,.Which is, in fact, something the Disciples don’t do, as we’ve seen on Bardo (but Bellamy has not seen it yet) - they just value lives as more soldiers for the cause. Their “humanity” is abstract - they are ready to sacrifice individuals for it (everyone except the Shepherd). Bellamy, on the other hand, has always been about valuing individual lives and saving them - be it Mel on season 2, or the slaves in season - and he managed to do it while also loving his sister and his friends. The Disciples and Doucette’s arguments present a false dichotomy. But, unfortunately, Bellamy still has deep guilt and self-loathing that he never fully resolved (even in season 6, he still talked about his many sins in 6x04), and he’s tired by always having to fight another war for survival, just to followed by another. (Which is similar to Clarke’s misgivings in 7x03: “I’m afraid that fighting is not what we do, it’s what we are” and Raven’s and Clarke’s conversation about guilt over having killed so many people.) The only time he didn’t have to always worry and/or fight were the years on the Ring, but he was still grieving Clarke and missing Octavia and motivated by going back down to reunite with her He knows what he’s capable of doing out of love - and he also has unresolved issues with the women he loves. In season 4, he lamented how pathetic he was coming back to his sister when she kept treating him badly, and in the 7x07 Ring flashback, he thought his love for his sister was his “weakness”. He’s certainly been hurt by her, finally rejected her and then later got to reunite with her, get an apology and forgive and make up with her. He and Clarke have also certainly hurt each other and forgiven each other, and that relationship is still unresolved. Bellamy himself admitted to Jo!Clarke in 6x09 that he was exhausted by their ups and downs and lack of resolution. And Echo... well, he should know exactly where he stands with her, but he didn’t seem happy about their relationship and seemed to want her to be Clarke someone else.

I can see why Bellamy started to envy Doucette his emotional calm that his faith and worldview seemed to bring him.

We got another Pike mention in this ep (and again, it was a reference to his positive role - as a teacher of Earth skills). The last time Bellamy made it was in 6x07 when he found out Clarke was alive. Pike was also a father figure to Bellamy - just like Kane, and now Cadogan. Bellamy has been called both a King and a Knight. Some of his biggest mistakes were when he chose to trust in a leader/father figure (the last time, it was Pike - who was, however, very different from Cadogan and his views on the opposite side the spectrum from Bill’s), and ALIE!Raven thought that one of the ways she could try to taunt him and erode his confidence was to call him a follower rather than a leader. Only she tried to convince him that he was in subjugated position to Clarke - which IMO was never true. They have always had an equal relationship (except when external circumstances made it otherwise - see, Kane and the adults taking the power away from Bellamy, while Clarke was able to take it back from Abby mostly because she was backed up by the Grounder Commander), and Clarke was the one who always tried to boost Bellamy’s confidence in his abilities as a leader. He was definitely a leader of his people in season 5 and season 6, and he works best as co-leader with Clarke (and vice versa). But even when Bellamy supported Clarke, he was questioning his decisions, even though he was rarely able to change Pike’s mind - he wasn’t blindly obeying and accepting everything, as he would have to with the Disciples.

Another factor in Bellamy’s transformation is of course the fact that he spent months in the cave - to the point of physical and mental exhaustion. Every time he and Doucette would climb the mountain, the peak where the Stone was would turn out to be even higher. Bellamy himself used two of the Greek myths to describe the task - Sisyphus and Icarus. A pointless task that results in having to do everything all over again (just like what he said about having to always fight another war), and a dangerous task likely to destroy you.

Bellamy was still insisting on reason over faith - “I believe in what I can prove” - but then he got to see the beings of light, as “proof”..

And here we come to the more interesting part of this ep and something that the show may or may not explain. I’m pretty skeptical about Cadogan’s views of what these beings are. How do we know that they have really “transcended” and become eternal or whatever, living on some kind of higher plane? No one has communicated with them, or have they? They are aliens, from our POV. Maybe that’s their natural state? Maybe they’re dead and this is just what remains of them? Maybe they died in a similar catastrophe as the Bardoans but one that was more about fire than ice, as Selina hypothesized in her review)? Maybe they are in agony? Sure, they look beautiful to human eyes, and fit the human culture’s idea of what spirituality and transcendence is like - but you can’t know that for sure. The frozen crystal giants on Bardo also look beautiful, after all, and that entire species died horribly

And then the second “otherworldly” thing happens after Bellamy finally agreed to prey - and he has a vision, involving Cadogan as his spiritual guide, leading him from a place full of weapons - swords and guns - to the place where he sees his dead mother, Aurora. It’s a beautiful and emotional scene, and I can’t imagine all the things Bellamy is feeling as she touches his face - including, probably, more unresolved guilt - over getting his mother executed (because he loved his sister and tried to make her happy). Aurora tells him Go to the light, Bellamy” and he looks at the figures of light - but we don’t learn what, if anything, he saw there .

I hope we learn that Bellamy saw something important - maybe something connected to the Judgment Day Becca talked about - that would explain the extent of his conversion, although it seems that it is mostly supposed to be a consequence of the fact that the storm stopped at the moment when he chose to prey.

The final step in his ‘spiritual journey’ is after that, when he barely managed to reach the top. After repeating the mantra “I am not afraid” (something else from the Blakes’ childhood - the same line Octavia was repeating on Bardo to resist the Conductors), he admits to himself “I am afraid”. In retrospect, a sign that he was broken, and started feeling that his past and his family were not enough to give him strength and faith. The jump from the top was described as a “leap of faith” by Doucette - which is kind of ridiculous, since it had nothing to do with faith, just with the fact that Cadogan was there and knew how the Anomaly worked, and the fact he was able to climb the mountain and leave is proof that the Anomaly worked properly.

(I wonder why the heck the Anomaly works so differently on different planets - in some cases you can enter the Anomaly right next to the Stone when you’re leaving the planet, and in others, you have to go back to the original entrance that’s somewhere else.)

Now, the visions may be explained in several different ways:

hallucinations - earlier, Bellamy found a family photo and recognized Cadogan, and he would know how Conductors and high ranking Disciples dress, he’s seen the white robe on Anders and Doucette

everything in the cave is real, and Cadogan has some sort of a telepathic connection to the cave (the true believer’s interpretation)

the brain implant/hive mind theory (by Selina again - I don’t believe in this one as there has been no evidence of it so far)

projections/hologram - see Jean’s theory that Cadogan used the hologram technology to project images of himself and Aurora (whose image is familiar to the Disciples from Octavia’s memories)

a combination of some of the above - the beings of light may be real, and Cadogan may have stumbled onto something but has again misinterpreted what it was all about; Bellamy’s vision of Cadogan was a hallucination or projection, but he also did see something real when his mother (again, possible hallucination or unexplained spiritual phenomenon) told him to look into the light.

It’s possible that the show will never fully explain what really happened here, just as Murphy’s vision of hell has never been explained.

The reunion

Up until this point, the episode doesn’t seem to show a seriously disturbing turn in Bellamy: we saw that he was starting to take the Disciples’ faith seriously and even to believe in it, and the first thing he does when turning up in the Stone Room on Bardo is look happy and relieved he made it, and hug an equally happy Doucette. So, he made a friend among the Disciples and will be the one telling Clarke and the rest: “We should take this seriously, they have a point, here is what I saw on Etherea...” - right? That would make perfect sense while not fundamentally changing who Bellamy is.

But no! Bellamy falls to his knees and calls Cadogan “My Shepherd” - which was one of the most painful scenes for me to see in all of the show, even more so than the later scene where he snitches on Clarke. There’s been a lot this season about “kings” forcing subjects to kneel - but instead of the “kneel or die” approach that Anders more or less used (while Sheidheda is using it in the most literal way possible), this is out of genuine belief. I don’t know if I’m really buying this massive transformation that we see here and in the next scene. It’s just a bit too much. Maybe information about what it was that Belalmy saw when he went ‘into the light’ would help explain it better.

Cadogan is happy to use Bellamy to convince Clarke to cooperate, and informs him: “Your friends are here, they have gotten themselves in some trouble”. Maybe this adds up to the reason why Bellamy is uncomfortable when he sees them a bit later, because they’ve been bad - but only some of them were (Echo with her murders, torture and genocide attempt, the others - not really, except Hope, someone he doesn’t even know yet). But when he comes to see them, he looks broken, exhausted and numb after all his experiences. And probably wary of giving in to the “selfish love”. (His friendship with Doucette is presumably in line with his new faith, but he seems to think his friendship with Clarke is not? Is that his relationship with Clarke actually involves love, real love for an individual?) After finally reuniting with the people he had been trying to reach all that time on Etherea, he doesn’t even look happy to see them. To quote Bellamy from earlier in the episode,Sometimes, Bellamy Blake, irony is funny. This is not one of these times.

Meanwhile, his friends are in Cadogan’s living quarters in house arrest. Conveniently, it’s just Clarke, Echo and Octavia there - plus Gabriel, but the focus is on Bellamy’s reunions with the three women he named as the people he loved earlier in the episode. Raven is not there, neither are Miller, Jordan, Niylah or Hope. (The last time Bellamy saw Jordan, Jordan was the brainwashed one. Hey, what happened to that storyline? Did it end up as a casualty of the rewrites?)

They’re discussing what to do, and Clarke has decided to basically sacrifice her life so the others could escape. We know that Clarke is a very selfless person, but the way she’s been increasingly casually deciding to sacrifice herself feels a bit disturbing - as if she’s stopped caring about her own life or hoping for happiness. At this point, her big character development would be to choose happiness and try to have what she wants. Even her “selfish” actions up to this point were mostly about trying to protect others. We haven’t even seen her show much emotion this season - as if she was on autopilot - except for her early grieving Abby earlier in the season, and moments when she’s silently grieving Bellamy,

Cadogan is there to offer the carrot rather than the stick, and being a drama queen, doesn’t Clarke and the others that Bellamy is there, but lets him in. They are massively surprised but don’t notice something’s off, or rather, they seem to assume he is just physically exhausted and in pain rather than mentally/emotionally off, as he silently looks at Clarke and Octavia and then Echo. Camera shows close-ups of the reactions of the people who love him: Clarke’s, Echo’s and Octavia’s reactions before going back to Clarke. (Probably because she’s the main character, in case people have forgotten, and her relationship with Bellamy is at center of the show), Octavia is happy and proud tries to hug her brother, but the Disciples pull out weapons. Clarke ignores the weapons, counting on her status/leverage, and hugs him.

She looks lovingly at him, with something we haven’t seen from her in a long time - happiness, that’s definitely not “best friend that I’m not attracted to” but “best friend I have naughty thoughts about”. (Only love can make you hug someone who must be smelling really badly at this point, considering Bellamy hasn’t washed or changed his clothes in over 3 months!)

This hug is different from any other Bellarke hug ever, since Bellamy is so numb, even when he hugs her back, but she is too happy to see him back to notice. And then when she takes the chance to also get him up to speed and tell him about the Flame - he gets an incredibly sad look on his face. He is not unemotional now - but he has decided he must ignore and suppress those feelings, betray her trust and tell Cadogan the truth, because his faith and the so-called “love for all mankind” comes first.

Everyone is shocked when he calls Cadogan “My Shepherd” and then beyond shocked when he betrays them - and camera again shows Echo’s, Octavia’s and Clarke’s reactions, going back to Cadogan, and then the episode ends on a close-up of Clarke’s shocked face. Because, you know, she’s still the main character. And finally, now we can hopefully have a S7 storyline that properly focuses on the show’s protagonist and utilizes Eliza’s talent allowing her to show a range of emotions. When Clarke believed Bellamy was dead, he was someone she could hold in her memory and try to honor it by saving his sister and girlfriend - but this is a whole new way of losing him, right after thinking she got him back, and means real emotional turmoil.

Bellamy has become a true believer and decided to stop being himself. And the people who love him will now have to deal with his loss - in another way - all over again, and try to save him. I’m torn because this storyline offers huge opportunities for a “power of love” storyline right out of a fanfic, but I’m uncomfortable with the idea that it may come at the expense of having Bellamy be manipulated and subjugated to a white megalomaniac villain in the last season. But I hope and expect we will see genuine character development and re-affirmation of who Bellamy Blake is. Now, there are a lot of things Bellamy doesn’t know yet and that have contributed to him drinking Cadogan’s Kool-Aid (he hasn’t seen Cadogan’s dealings with his family or Second Dawn, or what he did to Becca, or Anders’ actions on Bardo, or the way the Disciples mistreat their own people, and he doesn’t know about Cadogan’s mistranslation of the Bardoan text), but I don’t think the resolution of this storyline will be about Cadogan or what Bellamy knows about his religion. I think it will be Bellamy himself and his relationships. Clarke and Octavia had big character arcs in season 5-6 where they had to deal with who they are, who they’ve become and what they want to be negating everything he is. He needs to finally really deal with his self-loathing and guilt and he needs to gain back trust in himself, the Bellamy Blake that others loved and trusted and relied on. He needs to feel loved and decide that love is strength and a positive rather than just ‘selfish’ force. (And who can show him that? Hint: not his girlfriend Echo, whose love he would definitely see as confirmation that love is selfish and destructive, as it makes a person do things like murder, torture and attempted genocide out of revenge. Another hint: probably the same person who gave him confidence and made him believe in himself and grow as a person, multiple times, all the way back in season 1 and again in season 3 and season 4, telling him he was a person that other follow because of his big heart and the way he can inspire people. And third hint - the same person Bellamy was saving - her physical self - in season 6, will be the one who’ll have to save him, mentally, save who he is., in season 7.)

Rating: 8/10 (could go higher or lower depending on how the cave visions are explained and what the outcome of this plot is)

#the 100 #etherea #the 100 7x11 #bellamy blake #clarke griffin #bill cadogan #octavia blake #the disciples #the anomaly #bardo

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mtvswatches · 5 years ago

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Jane the Virgin 2x20 – Chapter Forty-Two

Click here for previous recaps!

Stray thoughts

1) I guess I should’ve figured the season finale would revolve around the wedding, but for some reason, I thought they would get married before that. What is it with TV shows and season finale weddings?

2) Jane is looking forward to spending Mother’s Day in the traditional Villanueva way – binge-watching telenovelas and bingeing ice-cream. But Petra sends her an invitation to start a new tradition, I guess. She’s organized a brunch so that they all get to spend Mother’s Day together and Rafael doesn’t need to split his time between the two households. Xiomara and Alba tell Jane to say no, but she just can’t break Petra’s heart.

3) They’re planning a crossover for Rogelio’s telenovela, and it seems epic…

Rogelio and Fernando are basically having a pissing contest to see who’s the biggest star, and Michael will inevitably get caught in the crossfire.

4) Anezka’s plan seems to be working perfectly…

Jane has to clear everything up with the school’s authorities, and she’s told she won’t be accepted back as a TA the next semester. Jane sets out to discover who is behind the fake email account and to prove that drama does not follow her around. Good luck with that.

5) So, the narrator just said…

As my grandmother used to say: “Ay, not this guy.”

…and I’m here trying to figure out if this is a clue as to who the narrator is. It has to be. But I can’t remember any characters saying this before. Could it be Alba’s line and hence the narrator would be Jane? Or is it Xiomara’s and the narrator is Mateo? Or could it be something Jane will say at some point and it’s her grandson doing the narration?

6) Jane realizes Anezka is behind the fake email account because of her awkward grammar, and I’m kind of glad she discovered it quickly because I thought we were headed towards a “Jane thinks Petra tried to ruin her career and they fall out AGAIN and everyone fights during Mother’s Day.”

7) Jane tells Petra all about Anezka’s involvement in the fake email thing, and Petra agrees to talk to her to clear everything up… but they did get into a little thing regarding the Mother’s Day brunch, so they still might get into a fight. And I’m guessing Anezka will bring up the “Petra is not a hands-on mom” comment and make Petra explode.

8) Rogelio is still sleeping with his writer. She didn’t invite him to her birthday party because she assumed he wouldn’t get along with her “intellectual” friends and Rogelio begs her to give him a chance to bond with them, while recruiting Jane to give him an intellectual side. This should end well.

And the irony here is just *chef’s kiss*

9) As predicted, Anezka blurted out that Jane said Petra is not a good mother, which is not exactly what Jane said but it was subtly implied…

10) Well, Derek is blackmailing Rafael into selling him the Fairwick for a dollar. And yes, I’m still not interested in this storyline.

11) Rogelio channeling Michael Scott in a time-traveling soap opera? Michael Scott would love it!

12) When talking to Jane, Rogelio realized that even though Michael was grateful for the job he’d given him as head of security, he didn’t find it motivating. So, thanks to Michael’s expertise as a police officer, Rogelio promoted him to technical advisor, and Michael seems super excited about it. Rogelio is simply the best.

13) Petra confronts Jane about the “bad mom” comment, and it all spirals out of control, until both out of spite for Jane and a sense of kinship towards Anezka, Petra tells Jane Anezka didn’t place the ad.

14) Poor Anezka…

15) Well, Michael is taking his new job a little bit too seriously and I guess that’s not going to last long.

16) Rogelio asks Jane to show up at the dinner party to coach him through the conversation in person, and Xiomara encourages her to go. She seems to be handling Rogelio being in a new relationship quite well. I wonder if she’ll break down at some point.

17) Or she’ll make a terrible mistake, which is the Xiomara style…

18) Rogelio’s attempt to look smart fails miserably but he ends up admitting to his lady that he did the whole thing to impress her friends because he actually likes her. She admits that it was stupid, but it was also very sweet, and they seem to become closer because of it.

19) Jane admits to Rogelio that she wanted to be supportive and help him out but it made her feel uncomfortable and that while she’s always on his side, she needs a little bit more time to be totally on board with being around her dad’s new girlfriend. It’s a very sweet moment.

20) Dina! The lady writer is called Dina!

21) Hm. Rafael just opened up to Jane and told her everything about his brother, and she literally went inside and blurted it all out to Michael. This lady can’t keep a secret! You see what I mean? That’s not what a good person would do!

22) Rogelio made a video to celebrate Jane’s motherhood, and it’s very sweet, but I’m guessing it will make Petra feel like crap? Rogelio is simply the best, though!

23) Aww, Anezka is now trying to toast to Petra and she’s so sweet.

24) Narrator is dropping a lot of hints in this episode…

And while we’re sharing about our moms, can I just say I have the greatest, most supportive, bestest mother, ever? Love you, mamma, so much.

25) Even though it ended up being a tolerably pleasant event, Jane just can’t hold it any longer and starts screaming at Anezka and calling her a liar. And again, this makes me dislike her? Yes, she was right, but was it really the moment to do that? Did she really have to rip her head off just when they were about to leave and they had survived the whole afternoon? And of course, this happened as a result…

26) After they release her from the hospital, Anezka admits that she did in fact post the ad and naively tells Petra to stop lying for her. She’s trying to make amends, but this only allows Jane to get back on her high horse and judge Petra. I don’t know, am I the only one who slightly dislikes Jane…?

27) Michael seems to have an epiphany as regards Derek’s alibi and calls his former partner (I think?) to ask her to let him join the case again.

28) Anezka is pretending to be Petra? Did they really have to turn her into the evil twin? So this means that she has been playing the naive, childish role to manipulate everyone around her. I guess I should’ve seen it coming considering how many times they referred to the Evil Twin Trope in this episode. But I honestly thought they would try to subvert the trope?

29) Yep, mistakes were made.

30) Petra tells Rafael he was an idiot to tell Jane about the whole blackmail thing, and I agree with her. Why did he tell Jane when Jane is marrying Michael, an ex-cop? And why didn’t he tell Petra, who is his business partner? Oh, of course, plot reasons.

31) Muter is back, I guess. This doesn’t make this storyline any more interesting.

32) So I’m guessing the season finale will be split between the wedding and Michael getting caught in this crime ring thing, right? Eh, that doesn’t sound too exciting to me. We’ll see.

33) Hope you enjoyed my recap, and, as usual, if you’ve got this far, thank you for reading! If you enjoy my recaps and my blog, please consider supporting it on ko-fi.Thanks!

#Jane the Virgin #Jane Villanueva #Gina Rodriguez #Rogelio De La Vega #Michael Cordero #Petra Solano #Anezka #JTV recap #recap #JTV 2x21 #mine

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pafsplayground · 5 years ago

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OKAY WELL I REALLY WANT TO RANT ABOUT MY OCS SO YEAH Y'ALL HAVE TO SIT THROUGH THIS FOR A BIT

Page is super self conscious, that's why he's literally the only one in his immediate family who wears a mask.

Lil Meg was found rummaging in the trash by Jiri, she immediately bit Jiri's wings upon being picked up.

The last time Twist had more than two airheads they almost broke their leg after forgetting that their hand isn't attached to their body and tried to dangle from a tree. They were not allowed candy since.

Claymore LOVES coffee. It doesn't have the same effect to him as it does to others (cuz hes an alien) but he likes it.

Kinda obvious but Claymore smells like clay.

Page has a strawberry garden in his and Twist's backyard.

Fluff brings Claymore coffee from the Cafe whenever she visits her brothers.

Jiri, who started as just my internet persona, is now considered a universe jumping being. This is why she plays a roll in Lil Meg meeting Page and Twist despite not technically belonging in their universe.

Tove and Fluff have been friends since 7th grade.

Draca likes all meat EXCEPT for turkey, for some reason. Nobody knows why but that's the ONLY meat she won't eat. She is why ham is present at family dinners during this universe's version of thanksgiving.

Yes, they have a different version of thanksgiving in this world.

Lee, Hunter's daughter, plays Smash Bros and mains Kirby.

She has also completed every run in Undertale. Including all the neutral endings.

Fluff likes musicals. Her current favourite is The Lightning Thief musical. Totally not just me projecting on my own characters

Draca struggled with her sexuality for a while because she was never introduced to the concept of sexuality (not her mom's fault, you can't expect a dragon to think it's important to specify. Her mom is very supportive.)

Probably cursed but in this universe the Cats musical is called Humans and Humans (2019) is just as cursed as Cats (2019).

Fluff makes great smoothies.

Hunter has a Reddit account SOLELY because he frequents r/roastme. He's very well known there.

Lee has TONS of Worms-on-strings. She sells them for two dollars a worm at school. She has multiple packs of thirty sitting in her closet.

Fluff loves buying succulents. She has three on her nightstand.

While Fluff has a green thumb, Draca has a black thumb of death. She can't even water a plant without killing it.

Draca is lactose intolerant.

Which is a real shame because she loves cheesecake.

Fluff's tail gets REALLY heavy after a shower and she spends 30 minutes after showering using a blow dryer on it.

Lee has Minecraft pajamas. Tons of them. More than just the Enderman onesie.

Amari has a tiktok account with 10k followers.

Hunter does his best to be a good dad to Lee. He goes all out on birthday decorations and themes.

The Boone-Kless family get together once a month for DnD. Draca's mom hosts for the atmosphere, she also roleplays the bbeg because it hits different when a 50 foot long dragon is the one monologuing.

Lee has ADHD and uses fidget toys and sensory stuff.

Page loves trail mix.

There is literally no reason for twist to not have an arm I just decided why not and gave them a floating hand and no arms. Their twin sister is perfectly normal.

Oh yeah they have a twin sister.

While uncle Alistair could have raised the Boone kids, he was already dealing with 2 year old Adya and Twist so he didn't want an infant and a six year old to worry about.

The Boone kids were raised by grandma and grandpa Uroe instead.

Fluff was 4 and Hunter was 9 when they found Claymore and his little crash site. (I'll talk about Claymore's story in a separate post.)

Lee WILL talk your ear off about her special interests.

Despite everyone in this universe being furries, pets do still exist. It's like a monkey-human situation.

Fluff wants a pet snake.

Both Fluff and Page are eggnog monsters. During the holidays, it's best to get your cup before they even know it's in the house or you won't get any.

Draca is a great cook. Fluff on the other hand, is better at baking.

Page and Fluff bond over baking.

As much as she loves the latte art Fluff can do, Lee is no longer allowed more than one (1) cup of coffee a week.

Nobody knows why Hunter and Fluff's parents had a hit on them. It's a cold case.

Hunter has nightmares about his parents.

Hunter made some mistakes as a teen and as a result, is a single dad. Lee's mom wasn't a nice person. He blames himself.

Draca can breathe fire but she doesn't use it often. When she gets tired, little puffs of smoke come out of her nose.

Switching universes for a sec, the largest age gap between the Test Subjects is 3 years (Sty 13, Carmen 16)

The youngest known subject was 9 but the "researchers" felt like they were too annoying and stubborn to deal with.

The current youngest known subject is 12. They are not central to the story. If it's any consolation, the Test Subjects do end up busting out the others eventually.

The Test Subjects were captive for 2 years. Adam was 13. Cam was 13. Sty was 10 (and a half!).

After busting out; Adam, Cam, and Sty helped Carmen out. As a result, freeing Julie as well.

Julie is an asshole and never gets redeemed in any way. She manipulated and took advantage of Carmen and deserves what she gets.

Not a single main character in The Test Subjects is straight. Not one.

Adam is aro ace.

Cam is an ace lesbian.

Sty is a demi boy (they/them and he/him) and gay.

Carmen is a lesbian.

Julie is.... Well.... She's Julie. She doesn't care. She's pan, I guess.

Cam spent MONTHS stumbling around before Adam and Sty just went "nope, we are GETTING you a cane"

The "researchers" didn't give two shits about the subjects comfort or pain. They'd regularly perform horrible stitching and this resulted in them just saying "if it bothers you so much, fix it yourself".

Basically the subjects performed surgery on each other to PROPERLY stitch up whatever transplants they had.

They also bandaged them poorly, so the subjects would have their "roommates" fix it.

The rooms they were kept in had one "bed" that they either fought over or took turns on.

They weren't kept in the best condition is what I'm saying.

Carmen is the mom friend of the group.

If I could draw it right, Carmen would have a lip piercing. We'll have to settle for earrings for now.

On the topic of piercings, Draca would definitely have an eyebrow piercing if her scales didn't get in the way.

Speaking of Draca, she was a very rebellious teenager. One time she graffitied a huge green dragon on the side of a building that cut down a ton of trees in front of her mom's cave.

Speaking of Draca's mom, she's bisexual and currently dating a Sapper named Trix.

Back to the dnd thing, here are their most played classes.

Draca tends to play barbarians or paladins. Real tank-y classes.

Fluff plays druid or sorcerer.

Claymore likes playing bard.

Hunter tends to go for rangers.

Twist likes playing a wild mage.

Page prefers wizards or warlocks.

When they let her play, Lee plays a Cleric.

Mipos, Draca's mom, never told Draca what kind of dragon they are.

Lee decorates her room with stickers and posters.

These are the Boone-Kless fam's current PCs

#judy talks #judy's art #judy's ocs #headcanons #headcanon dump #canon facts #ocs #oc #original character #ask to tag #original characters #original story

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thinkyoureholy · 6 years ago

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Opposites Attract [2]

Pairing : Park Jimin / [FEM] Reader

Genre : Angst, Violence, Language, Fluff, Smut, Enemies to Lovers! AU, Fantasy! AU

Words : 2.8k

Pt 1. Pt 2. Pt 3. Pt 4. Pt 5. Pt 6. Pt 7. Pt 8. Pt 9. Pt 10. Pt 11. Pt 12. Pt 13. Pt 14. Pt 15.

⋘ ──── ∗ ⋅◈⋅ ∗ ──── ⋙

-8 years later, Present Time, Y/N’s POV-

I stared up at the sky, breathing heavily, my body drenched from head to toe. I let my mind wander the longer I stared up at the blue skies. I was exhausted, it hurt to move. This was something I had gone through almost everyday for the past eight years and I could never get used to it. The only reason I hadn’t given up yet was because of my hate for the Hephaestus faction.

I closed my eyes for a second before letting out a heavy sigh, waving my hand over my body and drying myself off. With a new sense of determination I got to my feet, immediately throwing up a shield of water to block his attack. If I wanted to grow stronger I had to keep fighting, even through my exhaustion. If I wanted to avenge my father I’d have to fight until I can’t move anymore.

I grit my teeth as I repelled his next attack, digging my heel into the ground. When doing so water crawled up my leg in a spiral, helping me stay in place as I raised my arms up high to the sky, a huge wave of water rising from behind me. The water cast a shadow over me, light shining through when I turned my hands so they were facing him now, the water taking the shape of small daggers. But before I could even think about throwing them his way I was engulfed by a huge wave of water, bigger than the one I had creating. He moved his hands around swiftly, trapping me in the ball of water he had created. He kept the water moving inside the sphere to make it difficult for me to manipulate any of it. Just as I was about to run out of air I was slammed back down to the ground. I gasped for air, pushing myself up with my arms but I was immediately slammed back down to the ground by what felt like a ton of water. I sputtered out the water that got into my mouth.

“More! You need to give more!” He yelled, hitting me with another wave of water when I tried to get back up.

“How do you expect to win any fight if you’re this weak?!” He shouted getting ready to throw another wave of water, this one much bigger than the ones previously thrown, “How do you expect to avenge you father if you can’t even win against someone that has the same power! If you even think about going up against anyone from Hephaestus you’ll end up the same as your-”

Before he could say anymore he was cut off, huge spheres of water hitting him from all directions. He wasn’t quick enough to evade or block the sudden attack. I raised my head, though weak, to see who stopped him.

“I think that’s enough don’t you think Hoseok?” He asked, making his way to stand in between the two of us.

“She needs to get stronger.”

“Yes she does but those words you were spitting aren’t a part of her training.”

“This is why she’s so weak! You’re far too easy on her, Yoongi! She’ll never be able to protect herself if they decide to rebel again!” He yelled, taking a step towards Yoongi.

Yoongi didn’t move, his facial expression impassive save for the one eyebrow he raised, “No but that’s why she has us around. If she can’t protect herself then we’ll just simply do it for her.”

“There will be times when we won’t be able to reach her. You know very well that we can’t be glued to her side every second of the day. If something were to happen...and we can’t save her-”

“With all the training I’ve done with you both I don’t think anyone could beat me. Sure you’re stronger than I am but then again you’re on the same level as Levi. You three are the strongest we have, I’d be concerned if I ever beat you in a fight.” I said, cutting him off as I got up.

I was a bit wobbly, still not fully recovered. Just as I felt like my legs would give out on me I felt an arm wrap securely around my waist, another grabbing onto my forearm. Yoongi had come over to help, Hoseok looking like he was about to do the same but he was too far to do so.

“I don’t want you going easy on me Hoseok, neither of you should think about doing so.” I said, side eyeing Yoongi who only smirked in response.

I placed my hand over Yoongi’s, silently telling him that I could stand on my own. He took a step away from me, weary when watching me sway from side to side for a second but I was fine after that. I looked over at the two, the same determination as before burning in my eyes.

“If I can’t beat at least one of you then I don’t even have the right to think about avenging my father.”

They both frowned at my words, sharing a look before setting their gaze back onto me. Hoseok walked over to where we stood, standing directly in front of me and placed a gentle hand on my shoulder.

“Your father would be proud of the woman you’ve become.”

I smiled softly at his words before letting it fall, “I’m far from being the daughter he would be proud of...I need to get stronger.”

The two frowned at my words, Yoongi opening his mouth to speak. He had only gotten my name out when Levi walked onto the field, cutting him off, “Sorry to cut training short. You need to come with me, little one, it’s time.”

I frowned at his words, glaring over at him, “When will you stop calling me that?”

“When you stop being my baby sister, which will be never.” He said with a hint of a smile, waving his hand over me, collecting all the water that drenched me to the bone.

He flung that water right back at Hoseok, Hoseok giving him a glare that bore deeper than the one I had given him, “You two know where to go, my mother is waiting for you.”

At the mention of my mother they got serious, nodding before giving a small bow of their heads. They left us without a word.

“Now, we have a meeting to attend.” Levi said, placing both of his hands on my shoulders.

I tsked at the clothes I was forced to wear, at least it was better than those god awful dresses I used to wear as a child but not by much. They were...a bit too tight for me but this was the uniform we all had to wear. I was in tights and a corset type of long sleeved shirt, gloves sewed into the sleeves. The uniform was paired with thigh high boots and a cloak. All the women wore this, men wearing it’s counterpart to match. I always hated wearing this because of the unnecessary amount of extra fabric and how tight it was. This outfit also hindered my movements, my usual clothes helping me move freely.

“Pay attention.” Levi muttered under his breath, nudging my side with his elbow.

I scoffed, hitting him back, “I am. I just can’t get used to these damn uniforms. They’re so outdated I mean who even wears corsets and cloaks nowadays?”

Levi stifled a laugh at my words, covering his mouth with his hand to hide his smile, “I think they make us look cool.”

“That’s only cause you get to wear harnesses…” I said, trailing off as I watched the leaders from each faction greet each other.

My eyes immediately landed on the man that killed my father, Levi’s gaze turning dark as he glared at the man. At the time that man was only the next in line to lead his people but with his own father dying a few years ago he stepped up. Levi and I had fought with my mother over giving him any type of power but she seemed more than okay with it. Eight years later we stopped fighting it but we didn’t hate it any less. Every time my eyes landed on that man I wanted nothing more than to drown him but I restrained myself. Just as I was about to mutter an insult my eyes landed on a familiar looking man.

I narrowed my eyes the longer I looked at him, trying to recall where I knew him from. He must’ve felt my stare as his eyes met mine. I didn’t bother looking away think he would but he didn’t instead he held my stare. He tilted his head to the side, a mischievous look in his eyes. Slowly but surely a smirk tugged on his lips as the seconds ticked by. My mouth hung open slightly as I remembered exactly who he was, that look on his face a dead giveaway. I hadn’t seen it in years but it was one I would never forget.

“Jimin…” I mumbled to myself, a small smile making its way onto his face, as if he was able to hear me say his name.

He had changed, so much so that I didn’t even recognize him at first. He had grown a few inches taller and looked leaner but he still had a good amount of muscle on him. All the baby fat he used to have on his face was all but gone, his cheekbones and jaw more prominent. I went to take a step towards him out of reflex, Levi grabbing onto my arm tightly, holding me back. There were so many things I wanted to ask him, talk to him about. I wanted to know why he disappeared all those years ago, that time I needed him the most, he was nowhere to be found. The boy I had created such a strong bond with vanished that same day my father died and this is the first time I’m seeing him since then.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Levi hissed out, his nails digging into my skin.

I said nothing, my eyes on Jimin who had looked away but that smirk stayed on his face. Something was different about him, and I’m not talking about his appearance.

I stood off the the side with Hoseok, Yoongi, and Levi, leaning back against the wall with my arms crossed over my chest. The meeting had ended a bit uneventfully, every faction just listing off the things they needed, my mother proposing ideas to help them, etc. Everyone had left except the three of us, or so I thought. I watched Jimin walk out of the room, his eyes on something in his hand. The others didn’t notice him, too engrossed in their own conversation but I wasn't able to keep my eyes off him.

“Oi...Park Jimin.” I called out, pushing myself off the wall.

He froze at the sound of his name, his eyes hidden from me since he had his head bowed, his bangs obscuring my view of those dark brown eyes of his. I walked over to stand in front of him, a small smile on my face.

“It is you isn’t it? I hardly recognized you for a second there.”

He didn’t say anything for awhile, finally lifting his head to meet my gaze, his eyes on mine as he smirked, “I could say the same for you,” He said in a low voice, checking me out shamelessly, his eyes roaming my body.

I rolled my eyes, realizing that I was right about his personality change. The Jimin I had known would never say something like that, “I see your appearance wasn’t the only thing that changed.”

“Again, I could say the same for you. I don’t remember you being this hostile.” He said with a tilt of his head, his eyes darting over to the other three who were watching us quickly before he met my gaze again, “Was losing daddy really that traumatic for you to change this much in such a short amount of time?”

My jaw fell open at his words, my eyes wide as I stared at him in shock. Did--did he really just say that? The smirk on his face confirmed my suspicions. But why...if he knew what happened to my father why would he even think of using that against me? Still in disbelief I let out what could only be described as something between a chuckle and a scoff.

“What...what did you just say?”

He raised his brows at my question, tilting his head to the other side now, “Is something wrong with your hearing now too?”

“You--you son of a bitch how dare-”

“How dare I state common knowledge? It’s no secret that your father died, most shamefully may I add. What’s wrong with me repeating what everyone already knows?” He said before all humor now gone from his eyes, an intense fire now burning deep within them, “I’m sick and tired of all of you from Poseidon acting like you’re better than us. How the fuck does that make sense, fire is stronger than water, it’s deadlier. We should be the ones in control, not you weaklings.”

He said, taking a step closer to me.

He wasn’t able to get any closer, daggers made out of water raining down on him. I felt a hand wrap around my arm, pulling me back, the three that had stood back all this time now standing in between me and Jimin. Hoseok had a tight hold on my arm as we watched the daggers dissipate. A heat I hadn’t felt in eight years surrounding us. My eyes widened in fear as I was reminded of what happened to my father the moment I saw Jimin’s fire engulf his arm. But instead of the fire being a mix of red, orange, and yellow it was blue, the hottest form of the element. I don’t remember his fire ever being like this...just how much has he changed?

“You really shouldn’t have done that.” Jimin said with a devilish grin, his fire covering both arms now.

He raised both his arms, aiming them at the four of us. He released a huge whirlwind of fire, the heat of it making us sweat. My heart skipped a beat at seeing it head straight for us. The lack of movement from the others told me they never expected an attack like this. Panicked I did the only thing I could think of. Using this would surely risk everything we had worked for over the past decade but if I didn’t we’d all burn. I yanked my arm out of Hoseok’s grip, taking a step forward and grabbing Yoongi and Levi and pushed them to stand behind me. I brought my own arms up, feeling the temperature in my fingertips begin to drop. This is one of the reasons why I wasn’t allowed to use it under any circumstances. I didn’t have it under control like my father did, this power causing me more harm than anything but if I could stop the people I cared about from burning to a crisp I was going to use it without any hesitation.

Just as the fire was about to engulf us a blast of ice left my palms. I grit my teeth when I felt the force of his attack begin to push me back. Digging my heel into the ground I glued my foot to the ground using ice but even then I was still being pushed back. Just as I felt my body about to give out I felt three pairs of arms wrap around me. Yoongi had wrapped his arms around my waist, keeping me in place while Levi and Hoseok each took ahold of my arms, keeping them steady. I looked to each of them, more determined than ever to stop Jimin. I let out what could only be described as an animalistic growl, my blast growing in size. I could barely feel my hands, my arms beginning to lose feeling, the effects of using this power already too much for me. With one last yell I pushed back once more, knowing I couldn’t hold out for much longer. I concentrated my power, sending a block of ice the size of a small building towards him. The fire stopped as soon as I did, my legs giving out. Yoongi held onto me tightly, keeping me upright. I stared over at Jimin who had managed to move out of the way on time, seeing how wide his eyes were. I was breathing heavily, leaning most of my weight on Yoongi since I was too weak to even stand on my own, Levi and Hoseok taking a stand in front of us.

“You won’t...take any of them away...from me...I won’t...let you…” I muttered out through heavy pants, wincing at the pain in my arms and hands.

Fuck, I forgot how much making and using ice hurt, I thought to myself just as I lost consciousness.

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maddie-grove · 5 years ago

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The Top Twenty Books I Read in 2019

My main takeaways from the past year’s reading:

Sometimes you think something is happening because of magic, but then it turns out to have a non-magical explanation so weird that you find yourself saying, “You know what? I wish faeries or God were responsible for this. I’d honestly feel less disturbed.”

Stop bathing and changing your clothes and shaving for three years, three months, and three days. You’ll find out who your real friends are. I promise you that.

I want more books about bisexual ladies!!! Give them to me!!!

Anyway...

20. The Prodigal Duke by Theresa Romain (2017)

Childhood sweethearts Poppy Hayworth and Leo Billingsley were separated when his older brother, a duke, sent him away to make his fortune. Years later, the duke is dead, a financially successful Leo has come back to England to take his place, and Poppy has become a rope dancer at Vauxhall Gardens after a life-shattering event. New sparks are flying between them, but is love possible when so much else has changed? Leo and Poppy are believable and charming as old friends, Romain makes great use of obscure historical details from the oft-depicted Regency period, and I loved Leo’s difficult but caring elderly uncle.

19. Simple Jess by Pamela Morsi (1996)

Althea Winsloe, a young widow in 1900s Arkansas, has no interest in remarrying, but almost everyone in her small Ozarks community is pressuring her to remarry, and she still needs someone to help farm her land. Enter Jesse Best, a strong young man with cognitive disabilities who’s happy to take on the work. As he makes improvements to her farm and bonds with her three-year-old son, Althea gets to know him better and starts to see him in a new light. This earthy romance could’ve been a disaster, but instead it illustrates how people with disabilities are often...uh...simplified and de-sexualized in a way that denies them autonomy. Morsi has a similarly nuanced take on Althea and Jesse’s community, which is claustrophobic and supportive all at once.

18. Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli (2018)

Outspoken and insecure, bisexual high school senior Leah Burke is having a tough year. Her friend group is in turmoil, her single mom is seriously dating someone, and she’s caught between a sweet boy she’s not sure about and a pretty, perfect straight girl who couldn’t possibly be into her...right??? The sequel to the very cute Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Leah on the Offbeat pulls a The Godfather: Part II with its messy protagonist, sweetly surprising romance, and masterful comic set piece involving the Atlanta American Girl Doll restaurant.

17. Copper Sun by Sharon M. Draper (2006)

Kidnapped from her home in eighteenth-century Ghana, fifteen-year-old Amari is sold into slavery and winds up on a South Carolina plantation, where she faces terrible cruelty but finds friends in an enslaved cook, her little son, and eventually a sulky white indentured servant around her age. When their master escalates his already-atrocious behavior, the three young people flee south to the Spanish Fort Mose in search of freedom. Draper’s complicated characters, vivid descriptions, and deft handling of heavy subjects makes for top-notch historical YA fiction.

16. A Prince on Paper by Alyssa Cole (2019)

After her controlling politician father was jailed for poisoning a bunch of people in their small, prosperous African country, Nya Jerami gained unprecedented freedom but also became the subject of vicious gossip. Johan von Braustein, the hard-partying stepson of a European monarch, wants to help her, partly because he sympathizes and partly because he has a crush, but she thinks he’s too frivolous and horny (if wildly attractive). After an embarrassing misunderstanding compels them to enter a fake engagement, though, she begins to wonder if there’s more to him. I’m not a huge fan of contemporary romance, but this novel has the perfect combination of heartfelt emotion, delicious melodrama, and adorable fluff.

15. One Perfect Rose by Mary Jo Putney (1997)

Stephen, the Duke of Ashburton, has always done the proper and responsible thing, but that all changes when he learns that he’s terminally ill. Wandering the countryside in the guise of an ordinary gentleman, he ends up joining an acting troupe and falling in love with Rosalind, the sensible adopted daughter of the two lead actors. Like another Regency romance on this list, this novel celebrates love in many forms: there’s the love story between Stephen and Rosalind, yes, but there’s also Rosalind’s loving relationship with her adopted family, the new bonds she forms with her long-lost blood relatives, the way her two families embrace the increasingly frightened Stephen, and the healing rifts between Stephen and his well-meaning but distant siblings. Stephen’s reconciliation with his mortality is also moving.

14. My One and Only Duke by Grace Burrowes (2018)

Facing a death sentence in Newgate, footman-turned-prosperous banker Quinton Wentworth decides to do one last good thing: marry Jane McGowan, a poor pregnant widow, so she and the baby will be financially set. Then he receives a pardon and a dukedom at the literal last minute, meaning that he and Jane have a more permanent arrangement than either intended. I fell in love with the kind-but-difficult protagonists almost at once, and with Burrowes’s gorgeous prose even faster.

13. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell (2013)

It’s 1986, and comics-loving, post-punk-listening, half-Korean Park and bright, weird, constantly bullied Eleanor are just trying to get through high school in their rough Omaha neighborhood. He’s only grudgingly willing to let her share his bus seat at first, but this barely civil acquaintance slowly thaws into friendship and blossoms into love. Far from being the whimsical eighties-nostalgia-fest I expected, this is a bittersweet love story about two isolated young people who find love, belonging, and a chance for self-expression with each other in an often-hostile environment (a small miracle pre-Internet).

12. Shrill by Lindy West (2016)

In this memoir, Lindy West talks about the difficulties of being a fat woman, the thankless task of being vocally less-than-enthused about rape jokes, the joys of moving past self-doubt, and the very real possibility that Little John from Disney’s Robin Hood was played by “bear actor” Baloo, among other subjects. I was having a hard time during my last semester of law school this past spring, and this book’s giddy humor and inspiring messages really helped me in my hour of need.

11. Seduction: Sex, Lies, and Stardom in Howard Hughes's Hollywood by Karina Longworth (2018)

In 1925, very young businessman Howard Hughes breezed into Hollywood with nothing but tons of family wealth, a soon-to-be-divorced wife, and a simple dream: make movies about fast planes and big bosoms. He got increasingly weird and reactionary over the next thirty years, then retired from public life. More a history of 1920s-1950s Hollywood than a biography, this book has the same sharp writing and in-depth film analysis that makes me love Longworth’s podcast You Must Remember This.

10. The Beguiled by Thomas Cullinan (1966)

In Civil-War-era Virginia, iron-willed Martha Farnsworth and her nervous younger sister try to run their nearly empty girls’ boarding school within earshot of a battlefield. When one girl finds Union soldier John McBurney injured in the woods, she brings him back to the house, where he exploits every conflict and secret among the eight girls and women (five students, two sisters, and one enslaved cook). Charming and manipulative, he nevertheless finds himself in over his head. Cullinan makes great use of the eight POVs and the deliciously claustrophobic setting; it’s fascinating to watch the power dynamics and allegiances shift from scene to scene.

9. A Gentleman Never Keeps Score by Cat Sebastian (2018)

Reserved tavern keeper Sam Fox wants to help out his brother’s sweetheart by finding and destroying a nude portrait she once sat for; disgraced gentleman Hartley Sedgwick isn’t sure what he wants after having his life ruined twice over, but he happened to inherit his house from the man who commissioned the painting...plus he’s not exactly reluctant to assist kind, handsome Sam in his quest. I wrote about this heart-melting romance two times last year; suffice it to say that it’s not only one of the best Regencies I’ve ever read, but also possibly the best romance I’ve ever read about the creation of a found family.

8. Frog Music by Emma Donoghue (2014)

Blanche Beunon, a French-born burlesque dancer in 1876 San Francisco, has a lot going on: her mooching boyfriend has turned on her, her sick baby is missing, and her cross-dressing, frog-hunting friend Jenny Bonnet was just shot dead right next to her. In the middle of a heat wave, a smallpox epidemic, and a little bit of mob violence, she must locate her son and solve Jenny’s murder. This is a glorious work of historical fiction; you can see, hear, smell, and feel the chaotic world of 1870s San Francisco, plus Blanche’s character arc is amazing.

7. The Patrick Melrose novels (Never Mind, Bad News, Some Hope, Mother’s Milk, and At Last) by Edward St. Aubyn (1992, 1992, 1994, 2005, and 2012, respectively)

Born to an embittered English aristocrat and an idealistic American heiress, Patrick Melrose lives through his father’s sadistic abuse and his mother’s willful blindness (Never Mind), does a truly staggering amount of drugs in early adulthood (Bad News), and makes a good-faith effort at leading a normal life (Some Hope). Years later, the life he’s built with his wife and two sons is threatened by his alcoholism and reemerging resentment of his mother (Mother’s Milk), but there may be a chance to salvage something (At Last). Despite the suffering and cruelty on display, these novels were the farthest thing from a dismaying experience, thanks to the sharp characterization, grim humor, and great sense of setting. Also, I love little Robert Melrose, an anxious eldest child after my own heart.

6. The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope (1974)

In 1550s England, no-nonsense Kate Sutton is exiled to the Perilous Gard, a remote castle occupied by suspicious characters, including the lord’s guilt-ridden younger brother Christopher. Troubled by the holes she sees in the story of the tragedy that haunts him, she does some problem-solving and ends up in a world of weird shit. Cleverly plotted, deliciously spooky, and featuring an all-time-great heroine, this book was an absolute treat. The beautiful Richard Cuffari illustrations in my edition didn’t hurt, either.

5. An Unconditional Freedom by Alyssa Cole (2019)

Daniel Cumberland, a free black man from New England traumatized from being sold into slavery, and Janeta Sanchez, a mixed-race Cuban-Floridian lady from a white Confederate family, have been sent on a mission to the Deep South by the Loyal League, a pro-Union spy organization. Initially hostile to everyone (but particularly to somewhat naive Janeta), Daniel warms to his colleague, but will her secrets, his shattered faith in justice, and the various dangers they face prevent them from falling in love? Nah. Alyssa Cole’s historical romances deliver both on the history and the romance, and this is one of her strongest entries.

4. The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite (2019)

Heartbroken by the death of her father and the marriage of her ex-girlfriend, Lucy Muchelney decides she needs a change of scenery and takes a live-in position translating a French astronomy text for Catherine St. Day, the recently widowed Countess of Moth. Catherine, used to putting her interests on hold for an uncaring spouse, is intrigued by this awkward, independent lady. I’ve read f/f romances before, but this sparkling Regency was the first to really blow me away with its fun banter, neat historical details, and perfect sexual tension.

3. The Wager by Donna Jo Napoli (2010)

After losing his entire fortune to a tidal wave, Sicilian nineteen-year-old Don Giovanni de la Fortuna sinks into poverty and near-starvation. Then Devil makes him an offer: all the money he wants for as long as he lives if he doesn’t bathe, cut his hair, shave, or change his clothes for three years, three months, and three days. This fairy-tale retelling is an extraordinarily moving fable about someone who learns to acknowledge his own suffering, recognize it in others, and extend compassion to all.

2. Vampires in the Lemon Grove by Karen Russell (2013)

In this collection, Russell weaves strange tales of silkworm-women hybrids in Japan, seagulls who collect objects from the past and future, and, yes, vampires in the lemon grove. She also posits the very important question: “What if most (but not all) U.S. presidents were reincarnated as horses in the same stable and had a lot of drama going on?” My favorite stories were “Proving Up” (about a nineteenth-century Nebraska boy who encounters death and horror on the prairie), “The Graveless Doll of Eric Mutis” (about a disadvantaged high school student who discovers an effigy of the even more hapless boy he tormented), and “The Barn at the End of the Term” (the horse-president story).

1. The Wonder by Emma Donoghue (2016)

Lib Wright, an Englishwoman who has floundered since her days working for Florence Nightingale during the Crimean War, is hired to observe Anna O’Donnell, an eleven-year-old Irish girl famous for not eating for four straight months. With a jaundiced attitude towards the Irish and Catholicism, Lib is confident that she’ll quickly expose Anna as a fraud, but she finds herself liking the girl and getting increasingly drawn into the disturbing mystery of her fast. Like The Perilous Gard, this novel masterfully plays with the possibility of the supernatural, then introduces a technically mundane explanation that’s somehow much more eerie. Donoghue balances the horror and waste that surrounds Anna, though, with the clear, bright prose and the moving relationship that develops between her and Lib, who grows beyond her narrow-mindedness and emotional numbness. I stayed up half the night to finish this novel, which cemented Emma Donoghue’s status as my new favorite author.

#books #reading #top twenty

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love-little-lotte · 6 years ago

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My Ranking of Outlander Season 4 Episodes

Season 4 is over, and now I’m experiencing my first Droughtlander. I found out about the show last November, when the fourth season just started. It seemed like it was only yesterday, and now I can’t believe that thirteen episodes had passed since then.

As most shows with more than three seasons, Outlander had its ups and downs. The show has been running for more than four years now, so I understand that the producers and writers are going to have a hard time making sure the viewers stay. Plus, it’s difficult to fit a really long book in just thirteen episodes.

There were times I wasn’t impressed by it, as many fans have ranted in social media. I can’t count how many times some moments felt forced. But, of course, there are also swoon-worthy scenes that took my breath away. This is Outlander we’re talking about.

So, here is my personal ranking of Outlander Season 4 episodes. This is my opinion, and my list. If you don’t agree with my choices, then you can leave a polite message about it. Just don’t be mean. We’re all entitled with our opinions, aren’t we?

And on a side note, let me just say that I haven’t read the books so I may make comments that will go against it. I’ve only read the first two, Outlander and Dragonfly in Amber. But I’m writing about the show, not the book, and yes I should take the source material in consideration but I guess I’m still free to talk about the show without reading it.

#13: Episode 8 - Wilmington

First off, I just want to say I really try to like Bree and Roger. There are times I’m so infuriated by them, and sometimes I feel their pairing is super forced. However, they’re kind of starting to grow on me. Especially at the last part of the season. This episode didn’t really help, though.

This was the show’s 50th episode, and I had such high hopes for it. Also, this was Bree and Roger’s first reunion episode! I thought there was going to be more of it. More spark and chemistry, I guess? The handfast scene felt off and rushed, and in my opinion, their first sex scene really tried hard to sample Claire and Jamie’s wedding night scenes. Actually, a lot of scenes were super rushed in this episode, and it really pissed me off. I get that they want to fit in more scenes as possible, but it just came out super wrong. And I’m really trying to like Bree and Roger, believe me, but their scenes in this episode didn’t do much for me.

Claire and Jamie were the only highlights of the episode, and I may be really biased because I really love the both of them. Claire fangirling over George Washington is funny (and quite creepy, too, if you think about it). Plus, Claire being the iconic feminist boss that she is was a delight to watch. Jamie rushing off to save Murtagh and friends was also fun. Sadly, not even Claire and Jamie could save this episode.

On the other hand, Bree and Bonnet’s scenes were difficult to get through. I’m not really good with scenes like that (as I have mentioned a lot of times), so I was kind of relieved that they didn’t actually show the whole attack. Still, I felt really sorry for Bree in this episode.

#12: Episode 11 - If Not For Hope

Lord John Grey appearing is my favorite thing in this episode. I just really love that guy! As Bree quoted once in this series, “It’s impossible not to like you.” (Or along those lines.) And I couldn’t agree more. He saved Bree from a forced marriage, even though she blatantly blackmailed him about his secret (which she apologized for later on).

Anyway, this episode is all about Bree coping with her pregnancy. We finally get to see her and her pregnant belly! It was delightful to see the men Jocasta invited fighting passive-aggressively for Bree’s attention. I’m also surprised to see a familiar face: Billy Boyd from The Lord of the Rings franchise. I was half-expecting him to ask about the second breakfast.

Fergus and Murtagh was also very good to watch in this episode, as well as Fergus’ devotion for Marsali and their bairn. It’s very Jamie-like, and I love that about him. Milord will be very proud of wee Fergus.

And of course, we get to see Claire and Jamie forgiving each other. Their apology to each other was sweet and tender, and it was good to see that their communication is still present, even though they’re an old married couple. I love how that they can still open up about their insecurities to each other.

However, this episode was just a bit draggy for my taste. The pace was very slow, and there were times I was bored out of my mind. I know the show doesn’t have to have action every time (this is a drama, of course), and I understand they need some “filler chapters” to build up the plot.

#11: Episode 12 - Providence

A lot of people had negative feelings about this episode, but I actually thought it was okay? Probably because I lowered my expectations after the previous episode. Yes, we only had glimpses of Jamie and Claire in this episode, but I’ve finally accepted the fact that this time, it’s not just about them. There are other characters now, and I just have to live with that.

First, let’s discuss Roger. I understand his anger and frustration in this episode. I mean, who wouldn’t? I get that he regrets most of his decisions because he suffered a lot from it. Thankfully, Fr. Alexandre was there to make Roger reflect more about his decisions. Fr. Alexandre’s story was actually really, really sad, but also really annoying. I mean, I get that he’s a religious guy and that he wants to do the moral thing. But he’s going to die if he won’t baptize the child. ANYWAY, Fr. Alexandre’s death scene was brilliant, though. Because of it, I discovered the musical score “Adagio for Strings” and it’s super beautiful and haunting. I love listening to it now.

Moving on! Bree and Lord John’s scenes are really cute, to my surprise. Their friendship may seem really unlikely to a lot of people, but I don’t know, Lord John’s just really drawn towards Jamie’s kids for some reason. *shrugs* Hats off to Bree in this episode as well. It takes a lot of gut to talk to Stephen Bonnet after what he did to her.

My favorite scenes in this episode was actually Fergus and Marsali. Especially Fergus. I wish there were more scenes with Fergus and Marsali. Their relationship is kind of like Jamie and Claire, but less problems thrown in their way, I guess. And that little scene where Fergus was leading the Regulators to rescue Murtagh? ICONIC.

Maybe the only fault that I can see in this episode is that it’s the penultimate episode of the season, and it’s just treated like it’s a normal episode. There was no build-up for the rescue. I guess I expected more.

#10: Episode 3 - The False Bride

We have two parts of the story in this episode. This is probably the first episode Bree and Roger showed up in this season. Let’s talk about that first.

Though I’m not a big Bree/Roger fan, this episode actually did justice for them. At the beginning of this episode, at least. I get to see more of their bonding, and I love how playful they are with each other. Their festival scenes were cute, and Roger singing while looking at Bree was actually really sweet! But then, he had to ruin it by proposing to her and Bree turned him down because obviously, she’s not ready. Ah, if Roger just didn’t open his stupid mouth. But he’s a guy from the 70s, and yes, times were different so I half-forgive him.

Claire and Jamie had a more uneventful night, as they leave River Run. There was a storm, and friggin’ Clarence the Mule got frightened and ran away. Claire chased after him and got lost, but found some weird things - like a skull that might belong to a time-traveller, just like her, and will probably be more important in the later episodes.

But it was actually destiny that they got separated because when Claire and Jamie finally meet each other again, they discovered their future home: Fraser’s Ridge! It reminded them of the Scottish highlands, and it felt immediately like home. It was a beautiful moment, and no one can do forehead-touching better than Claire and Jamie.

Nothing really bad in this episode, I guess. There are just better episodes.

#09: Episode 5 - Savages

I feel like I should put this episode more high up. Probably because one of my favorite characters returned: Murtagh! He’s one of the best supporting characters in the first two seasons, and I was really sad when I thought he’s not coming back. But due to popular demand, he did! And thank you Outlander producers for that.

However, it was not an easy reunion. Murtagh’s part of a group of Regulators, something like an organization against the redcoats. It’s what he does best, I guess: fighting off redcoats like they did back in Scotland.

Claire and Jamie talking about Bree in this episode is really sad and sweet at the same time. Love how Jamie talks about Bree to Murtagh, though! Like “my daughter’s in college and she’s super clever and all!” Ah, Jamie as a proud dad is indeed very appealing!

This was also a very devastating episode for Claire and her friend, Adawehi. When I saw how they interacted in the previous episode, I thought that they were going to be really good friends all throughout the season but nope! This German dude had to kill Adawehi for revenge. Which, of course, wrecked Claire.

This was a good nostalgic episode. Love Murtagh whistling the Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy when he met Claire in the last scene.

#08: Episode 2 - Do No Harm

Finally, we get to meet Jamie’s Aunt Jocasta in River Run. One episode in and you’ll definitely see the MacKenzie trait in her. She’s manipulative and cunning, just as Colum and Dougal was. They’re undoubtedly related. Needless to say, she was an interesting character. It’s always nice to meet Jamie’s relatives. They’re full of surprises and Jocasta didn’t fail.

Jocasta planned to leave her estate to Jamie. Though Jamie deserves it, since he proved to be a great landowner, he and Claire is not too happy with the fact that they’re going to own slaves. They tried to talk to Jocasta about freeing them and paying them for their work, but, of course, this was frowned upon by Jocasta. They also tried to save Rufus from an unlawful execution, but that didn’t really go well for them.

This episode is probably the most controversial (not sure if that’s the right word, but it sounds fitting?) episode in this season. It tackled slavery, which is a very sensitive topic even now. Some people said the show could’ve done better. However, I think the show handled it as best as they could. They handled it very well and very carefully.

Also, you can’t blame Jocasta for her actions in this episode. Remember, this was the eighteenth century and she was only acting like a regular woman in her time. She was just doing what she thinks is the best for her estate.

Jamie and Claire had agonizing choices to make, and I can’t blame them, too. Jamie inheriting the estate is good, but I also understand Claire’s hesitation in keeping slaves. I also get that they want to help Rufus but it wouldn’t be easy, given the circumstances. Everything’s just very complicated. But in my opinion, I think the show handled showing both sides (Jocasta’s views vs Jamie and Claire’s views) fairly.

#07: Episode 7 - Down The Rabbit Hole

Without a doubt, this is Sophie Skelton’s best episode yet. I have to admit that I was not a big fan of Sophie’s acting in the previous seasons, but this episode (and most of this season), she got better and she’s starting to feel like Bree.

A lot of fans don’t like Frank, and I get that. I, too, am not a big fan of him. But I understand Frank and Bree’s relationship and why he was included in this episode. He was a bad husband to Claire (she’s also not a good wife to him, might I add), but there’s no denying that he was a good father to Bree. He was her father for most of her life, and she looked up to him. And that little scene in the port where she turned around and saw him and they did that nodding thing? That really touched me. It’s as if she made peace with him, and promising him that he will always be his father, even though they’re not really blood related.

Though I don’t like the part that they showed Frank knew about the fire and didn’t tell Claire anything! Like, umm, you should’ve told your wife about that, Frank. It was good to see Tobias Menzies again, though. He’s a wonderful actor. (Can’t wait to see him in The Crown!)

Also, a lot of fans were not happy to see Laoghaire (hopefully I spelled that right). It didn’t stay true in the books, and Bree didn’t get to spend enough time in Lallybroch like she’s supposed to. Again, as I haven’t read the book, I’m going to let this pass. Laoghaire and Bree’s interaction at first was all right, until the former found out that the latter was Jamie and Claire’s daughter. This, of course, made Laoghaire flip and start spewing lies to Bree. Thankfully, Bree’s smart and finally realized that this was the woman who tried to kill her mother before. Ahh, I can’t stress enough how I was thrilled to hear Bree tell Laoghaire that Jamie never really loved her and he was never hers. Yes, gurl, tell that bitch the truth!

It was great to see Old Ian again because Steven Cree’s amazing. But it was sad that Jenny wasn’t there. I would love for Jenny to see her niece. Plus, this is probably the first episode (ever?) that Jamie and Claire didn’t make an appearance so that was also really sad, too. I missed them in this episode.

#06: Episode 10 - The Deep Heart’s Core

Did somebody say family drama? Because this episode definitely delivered a good family drama. I mean, this is Outlander we’re talking about! No one creates good family drama more than Outlander. Well, probably Downton Abbey.

This episode started off really well, with more scenes of Jamie and Bree bonding. I especially love their conversation about Bree’s pregnancy, and how they opened up to each other’s trauma. Jamie was able to comfort Bree, telling her about how he coped after what Black Jack Randall did to him. (Side note: I wonder what would Bree think about Frank if she knows he looks exactly like Black Jack.)

And just as Jamie and Bree’s relationship began to flourish, it was finally revealed that the Jamie attacked the wrong man. All because of friggin’ Lizzie. I know it’s not entirely her fault, but ugh! Anyway, Bree just started screaming and slapping Jamie and Young Ian, which really stressed me out. And telling Jamie “you’re nothing but a savage”? That’s a tad too harsh, Bree.

Claire’s also felt helpless because she doesn’t know what to do. She’s mad at Jamie, but she can’t really blame him for acting like a normal father. (But she gave him the cold shoulder, which annoyed me because they could just talk about this.)

So, yes. I was more or less frustrated the entire episode. But it made me feel things, so I ranked it higher. The episode actually delivered all the drama and I just love it.

#05: Episode 1 - America The Beautiful

Outlander started the fourth season very strong. It had romantic cute Jamie and Claire moments, thrilling action, and of course, a very sad ending that gutted me. I couldn’t ask for anything better.

After they were shipwrecked in the Season 3 Finale, it looks like the Frasers and their company were well-adjusted in America. Though their friend was executed for a crime, which was very sad, life goes on. Fergus and Marsali announced they’re expecting a child, which is thrilling for them. Jamie’s been offered a land by Governor Tryon, which is quite problematic because if he accepts, he’ll be swearing loyalty to the English Crown, and, as Claire reminded him, the English would be defeated by the American Revolution in the near future.

We also finally get to meet Stephen friggin’ Bonnet. If you think you can’t hate on another Outlander character more than Black Jack Randall, then think again. This thief is just an ungrateful asshole who, after being saved and shown mercy by the Frasers, decide to rob them and even kill one of their companions.

And despite the weird CGI in the river scenes, we are given a cute Jamie and Claire moment as Jamie gifts her a medicine box for their wedding anniversary. It was just so cute and romantic and aahhh, Jamie knows how to make a girl swoon after being twenty-four years of marriage. Claire is one lucky gal. Actually, this episode had a lot of cute Jamie and Claire moments, like the one when they were talking about the American Dream. The one with the medicine box was my favorite, though.

And even though the ending was really dark and horrifying, I just want to point out that Caitriona Balfe’s acting was exceptional. The expression she made when she realized that the ring Bonnet took was Jamie’s ring was so heartbreaking. Honestly, Stephen Bonnet is such a piece of shit.

#04: Episode 4 - Common Ground

Remember Tryon’s offer? Obviously, Jamie accepted it, and they - him, Claire, and Young Ian - start to build Fraser’s Ridge in this episode. It may sound really tiring, but it was great family bonding, trust me. It’s amazing how it only took them one episode to build their cottage because in the next episode (Savages), they already had furnitures and other house stuff.

So, as the Frasers begin to settle in their new land, the Cherokee were still wary of them. I can’t blame them, though. I mean, it’s their land, too, you know. Jamie tried to earn their trust, offering them goods through John Quincy Myers, one of Jocasta’s friends, who is close to the Native Americans.

Book readers were also surprised to see a major difference from the source material. There was a scene in the book in which Jamie wrestles a bear. However, the show changed it into a man wearing a bear get-up. Apparently, this man was banished from his tribe, lost his mind in the woods, and began to attack people like a bear. This guy is feared by the Cherokee but when Jamie killed him and brought the corpse to them, they dubbed him “bear killer” and finally formed a truce.

As much as I want to see Jamie wrestle a bear (how cool would that be???), I understand that TV shows don’t have enough budget like a blockbuster film. So, it was definitely all right for me to see Jamie wrestle a regular guy. I’d choose that rather than see him wrestle a bad CGI bear. Ugh. Also, I miss seeing Sam Heughan in action sequences, just like in the first season.

I thoroughly enjoyed this episode. Especially when Jamie carried Claire princess-style and told her about his plans for Fraser’s Ridge. It was so romantic and sweet.

#03: Episode 6 - Blood of my Blood

Lord John Grey’s first appearance in this season! Ah, that guy really knows how to make an entrance. In this episode, he said he “happened” to pass by Fraser’s Ridge, but of course we all know he just wants to see Jamie. You’re not being subtle there, Lord John.

He also brought Willie along, who prefers to be called William now. Of course, William doesn’t know about Jamie being his father, which is probably very torturing for Jamie. As they were about to leave the next day, Lord John fell ill and Claire tends to him, as Jamie takes out William so he can’t catch the measles, and of course, to spend quality time with each other.

Jamie and William are so cute together and it makes me wonder what could happen if Jamie was the one who raised him. It’s sad to think that Jamie never really gets to raise any of his children. He didn’t even get to see Faith before she was buried. And to think, all he wanted was to have a big loving family. (Wait, I’m straying away and I’m getting emotional.)

ANYWAY, Lord John and Claire also has a heart-to-heart talk with each other. I actually love the both of them so much. Caitriona Balfe and David Berry work so well with each other and it’s amazing. I know what’s going to happen to Claire and Lord John in the future (I accidentally read it in a comment thread ugh) so it’s good to see that both actors know what they’re doing.

The ending with Jamie giving Claire a new ring is so romantic and just plain swoon-y. I love it so much. Jamie and Claire romantic moments will never get tiring, I swear.

I also love the title of this episode because it could mean both things. First, it could mean Jamie and William because he did mention that “his blood is my blood” when the Natives was about to punish them because William took fish from their waters. Also, it could mean Jamie and Claire’s wedding vows because he presented her another ring as a symbol of his love for her.

#02: Episode 13 - Man of Worth

It was totally worth the wait. One of the best finales Outlander ever did. It had just the right amount of action and romance and drama. Everyone did a good job, and I’m so happy with it I can almost cry. I wasn’t too happy in the previous two episodes, so it was relief that the ending was just so good.

They finally rescued Roger, even though they had to exchange Young Ian for him. Young Ian’s actually one of my favorite characters, and he’s such a sweet goofball that I’m so sad to watch him go. It was the brave thing to do, and it was so good to see him grow up. He’s no longer a boy; he’s definitely a man of worth.

The whole scene with Jamie, Claire, and Roger in the woods was definitely fun to watch, all because of their exceptional acting, particularly Sam Heughan. His protectiveness and devotion for Bree was very apparent, as he wanted Roger to accept her, even though she was pregnant and all. It was such a Jamie thing to do, and I love that about him.

I’ve also read a short excerpt that’s been going around Facebook - the one when Bree gave birth during Drums of Autumn. Turns out her parents were present in the book, and it was such a sweet scene, and I’m kind of upset that it didn’t make it in the show. I’d love to see her and Jamie as she was giving birth. Still, I’m okay with how the show did it. Would’ve been nice, though.

Murtagh and Jocasta was a surprise, but it was a good one. Let’s throw in another major couple, shall we? I think Murtagh deserves a good love story, so I approve of this pairing! Wish to see more of this, too.

Love Roger and Bree’s very dramatic reunion. Of course they’re going to run to each other as music builds up. This is Outlander, after all. I just hope that they have better scenes together in the future seasons.

#01: Episode 9 - The Birds and the Bees

I mean, seriously. This is what we’re all looking forward to in this season. Jamie and Bree was the major highlight of this episode, and I love every moment they share. It was just a beautiful first-meeting scene. And I’m just so happy for the both of them! Finally, they get to meet each other! Sam Heughan and Sophie Skelton actually had good chemistry. They play the father and daughter duo perfectly.

I also love Jamie talking about Bree to Claire. This is what he’s wishing for a really long time: to actually get to spend time with his wife and his daughter. He gave them up so they can be spared from the Battle of Culloden, and now he finally gets to be with them. I’m a wreck in this episode, to be honest. Especially when he took her hunting and Jamie told Bree to call him “Da”. It was honestly the best thing ever. Can you just imagine the possibilities if Jamie actually saw her grow up? (Actually I can, and now I’m sad because it’s not true.)

Claire meeting with Bree was also sweet. Claire’s reaction when she first saw Bree was so pure. She’s been missing Bree for a really long time, too, and she thought she’s never going to see her again, so it’s just a miracle for her to see her daughter in the eighteenth century.

Though it’s quite sad when Bree admitted to Claire about being raped, it was a good mother-and-daughter scene. Claire’s maternal instincts kicked in, and she’s honestly just destroyed that she couldn’t protect her daughter from all the dangers in the world.

Ah, yes, this episode ended quite badly, as Lizzie (friggin’ Lizzie) had mistaken Roger for Bree’s attacker. Because of this, Jamie beat him up and Young Ian sold him to the Mohawks. I’m not a big fan of Roger, sure, but he does not deserve those punches.

Still, this episode was well-executed. It’s my favorite in this season, all because of the reunions, the smiles, and tears.

There you have it! Season 4 may be messy and rushed, but I was entertained and I had fun for the most part. It was fun looking forward to Monday (I watch it in Netflix, and it arrives a day later in my country) and now, I have no idea how to spend my Mondays.

It’s not the best season, in my opinion, but I’m glad that they have expanded the story to other characters. As I said earlier, this is not Jamie and Claire’s story anymore. It’s now going to be about their extended family, too. I’m honestly looking forward for the next seasons, though I wonder how they’re going to make Jamie and Claire look like real grandparents.

Your grandparents could never. I mean, look at them! 👇

#outlander #outlander season 4 #outlander series #outlander starz #sam heughan #caitriona balfe #jamie fraser #claire fraser #jamie x claire #sam x caitriona #outlander season 4 ranking #outlander episodes

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far-away-stars · 6 years ago

Note

THE EXTREMELY DETAILED OC ASK MEME for Iegan AND Apate!! I warned you. :P Stay tuned for more. Probably.

There you are. At the best of my abilities. may it curse your sleep and bless my crops. :’D

under cut cause it’s damn fucking long.

Illyrio

1. Age, Birthday, Star Sign

So, I don't really have month/day precise birthdays for my ocs? :'D I don't even know how that would work on SW and I suck at star signs so… I can say Illyrio is born in 3682 BBY and that makes him 42 during the events of Makeb (which is the year he meets Muhn, if that works as a reference), and that I fancy calling him a Scorpio cause I guess it kinda fits.

2. Gender Identity

Cis man. It never really went further for him, he always was comfortable that way.

3. Orientation and Relationship status (single, taken (by who?), crush (on who?))

Bisexual. Married to Muhren in 3637 BBY in canon universe; alternatively fancying his mess agent Blakk in other ones and .. well, both in some others. >>

4. Race and Ethnicity

Human, in SW standards, and then I couldn't really go in many more details 'cause, well, I still kinda want it to apply to his universe rather than trying to stick Earth labels and I don't have a clear faceclaim… let's stick to "not white".

5. Height and Body type

He's 1m77 aka 5'9". He's not overly muscular, but still very much in shape. He has a pretty athletic body even if he's essentially built for agility.

6. Headcanon VA

I cannot find headcanon VA for the love of me, so, well, I suppose simple the Inquisitor VA for now. :'D Euan Morton is a Broadway actor and singer after all.

7. Occupation

Dark Council Elite, leader of the Sphere of Expansion and Diplomacy, with direct oversee on the Voss' diplomatic situation.

8. Weapon of Choice(?)

already answered here

9. Hometown and current residence

He was born on Ziost, in a slave breeding and training facility. He lived some years in an apartment at Dromund Kaas but now has set residence in his mansion on Voss, despite his work not often allows him to spend long periods of time there.

10. Do they have any markings, piercings or scars?

They have a number of scars, most prominent being the slave marking on his face, the whip scaring on his back and the lightsaber mark on his chest.

11. Do they have any notable features, like horns, tails, or so on?

Aside from the slave markings and, I guess, the white hair (not that much of a significant feature when alien races are involved :'D ) he doesn't really have any, no.

12. Own any pets?

Nope, thank the Force, he doesn't have to deal with his daughter's Nexus anymore and he's happier this way.

13. Have any kids?

Yes, his daughter Khatyrkite, that he had at 23 and adopted when she was 7.

14. Can they cook? Can they bake?

No. Let's leave it to that. :’D

15. Can they sing? Can they dance?

They can sing but it's not that easy to make them. They can formally dance with dignity, but not much else. Too rigid.

16. Can they drive?

Yes, but prefers to be driven around.

17. Can they fight?

Yes, double-bladed lightsaber and Force training. When younger he was also quite dangerous bare-handed but he hasn't trained that skill in a while.

18. Have any special keepsakes?

Not really… his lightsaber, I suppose. Old beads for his braid. But he isn't emotionally attached to many of his belongings.

Interests

19. Hobbies

Some not-so-light reading, meditation, napping, listening/going to the Opera.

20. Clothing/Aesthetic

Dark clothing with gold accents, rich reds, furs, and expensive tastes. Sith aesthetic meets some vague Arabian vibes and have a hedonist child.

21. Fave food(s) and drink(s)

He likes finger-foods; salty, small quiches are probably some of his favorites. As a drink he likes fruity and spiced wines, cold or hot.

22. Fave Color

Blood red.

23. Fave Genre

History books.

24. Fave Season

Autumn.

25. City or Country?

He spends enough time in the city working, so country for his relaxing times, but he wouldn't give up the comforts of the City easily.

26. Guilty Pleasure

Power? Witch sometimes turns into sex.

Storytime

27. What’s their family like? Who’s in it? What’s their relationship with them?

Before Muhn his family was basically only his daughter, Khatyrkite, and they were close, despite Illyrio's initial efforts not to be so. She grew on him and managed to slowly but surely make his fear more of an after-though. He didn't want to get attached to someone so easy to love. An alien child with no practical education thrown into the Academy of Korriban? Khatyrkite had to work hard to prove she could do it. And he did make her work, considering it necessary that she could prove and defend herself without her father's title to protect her. They have great affection for each other, even of it's often left unspoken, and even if not as strong as before, they still have their Force bond to prove it, even to each other.

28. Are they literate? Did they go to school? How long? What level?

They are literate, and learned most of his basic knowledge during slave training. The rest he took up keeping company to the young Master during his studies and generally during slave life. Then there was the Sith Academy and then he was taken as an Apprentice and Abraxas finished his education. He learned the rest on the way.

29. What was childhood like?

Not much of a childhood, let's say that. Studies, collars, biological engineering, slave training directed into obedience and alienation to self.

30. What was adolescence like?

Spent serving as a company slave in a high ranking noble family in Ziost. Let's say stunted.

31. What’s their current main conflict?

Finding any peace between overworking and starting to let go but risking losing status/power and a certain state of security born from habit.

32. What steps have they taken to overcome this conflict

Trusting more of his emotional baggage, vulnerability and work on his husband.

33. How have they changed over time?

He has become less.. unstable. Sith training following his slave one had pushed on many of the emotions he had been repressing beforehand, so, well, it made for a powerful Sith, but not much of an emotionally stable individual. He got in touch with more of himself and on what truly he wanted to be for his Muhn.

For Fun

34. What’s their room look like right now?

It's a mix between his rich but organised deco and Muhn's pretty clutter and his plants. Rich, elegant colors overall, generally elegant but comfortable looking, cushions, big bed, big windows, woods, a library. His room is his comfort place, really, and probably one of the rooms he spends more time in aside from his training room and the gardens.

35. What are they like as a friend?

Bad. Bad-ish.

36. What are they like as a partner?

He.. gets better at it, given a little time. >> The sex is good.

37. Do they have any phobias?

They are not fond of deep waters, but can manage them. They detest Force inhibition devices.

38. Did/do they go anywhere special for vacations?

They haven't gone in one in… dam forever. They wouldn't know at this point, really. It's a mix between wanting to be in a place where he wouldn't be recognized and his desire to keep his status and power close.

39. Your character walks into a cafe. What do they order?

Rich, hot, spiced coffee.

40. What time do they go to bed, usually?

Depends, they are very used to an irregular sleep pattern.

41. What’s their morning routine like?

Depending on how much time they have, the very least composes shower and a minimum of beauty care, they usually pick their clothes the day before. They usually snack something quick if they have the time and take a caff or directly a stim, if need be.

42. What’s the dumbest thing your character’s done?

That's not to be discussed here.

43. What pokemon would your character be (if they’re already a pokemon/gijinka tell us what they are, and how that’s affected them)?

I.. don't really know? Struggling between a dark type or simply a snob-looking one.

44. What’s their pokemon team? Try to pick all 6.

Dear Force, so.. Any snake Pokemon is valid and he should have them, this being said :

Arbok

Serperior

Ninetales

Spiritomb

Sableye

Chandelure

+if I may, a couple of legendaries that rule the Sith snake aesthetic :

Zygarde

Shiny Mega Rayquaza

45. Theme song (and a playlist if you’ve got it!)

I will always put "How can I refuse" here, no matter the consequences. :'D

46. If this character was in a musical, what would their motif be (what kind of instruments do you hear, what’s the tempo, ect).

Oh my god, I don't have that knowledge. Something low and a bit fear-inducing, but with a melody of strings, violins and violas, cutting it like the fresh falling of rain in between dark, tempest-heavy clouds. Some quiet, deep, rich drums.

The Deep Lore™

47. What was this character’s biggest turning point in their life, something that changed them almost completely?

Discovering he was Force Sensitive.

48. What was their lowest point? What was their highest point?

Lowest : his years at the Academy. Highest : Becoming a Darth/marrying Muhn.

49. What are some themes tied to your character’s story? I'm sorry, I'm getting too stuck with some of those deep© questions, I'm giving them up for now. :'3

50. What are some motifs associated with your character?

Villainous behavior, hedonism, manipulation, pragmatism, hyper-emotionalism.

51. What were some inspirations for your character (people, movies, games)?

Well, the Inquisitor storyline from STWOR, certainly, tho I didn't end up keeping much of it. Aside from that nothing really comes to mind but I'm sure I'm missing stuff. :/ In six years he has been through stuff.

52. How are you and your character the same? How are you different?

We struggle with other people's expectations and we don't want to be seen as weak or exploitable, I suppose. For how different we are I suppose the rest is pretty more obvious, but, mhn, I blame myself much more quickly, despite my barriers, so, well, instead of killing people I just get sad, I suppose. :'3

53. Expectations vs Reality: what did you expect and what did you get with this character?

I expected a hot, sassy, dark side playthrough. I guess I didn't expect the angst, the fluff and the attachment. :'33

54. What does your character want, and what do they need?

He wants power, but he needs to unlearn what truly gives him value.

55. What’s your character’s core trait? What’s their best trait? What’s their worst trait? When happens when these all interact with each other? see point 49.

56. What’s your overall goal with this character? Will they get a happy ending or will they succumb to their faults?

They.. eh. I don't really believe in endings? People go on, one way or another. He's much more than a simple narrative for me, now. If I were to just see how much he has already done in his life I would say he's in a happier place now, so, I'm glad. But that's not who he is either. It's not about getting him fixed, not really

---

Apate

1. Age, Birthday, Star Sign

Born in 3678 BBY, the rest is not in my book. :’3

2. Gender Identity

Non-binary/agender, intersex.

3. Orientation and Relationship status (single, taken (by who?), crush (on who?))

Bisexual, kinda taken by Kitty, but it's in the "it's complicated" folder cause we technically didn't even set a meeting point for them. :'D also, precedently entangled with Mikawlas, and generally involved with many other . >>

4. Race and Ethnicity

Togruta. Their faceclaim-ish is Ezra Miller, so some ethnic inspiration there.

5. Height and Body type

They are 1m81 aka 5'11". They are slender with some athletic features, especially on the abdominal area.

6. Headcanon VA

I have no clue. :'D I'm sorry.

7. Occupation

Went from sex worker to owner of the Golden Rose Pleasure Center.

8. Weapon of Choice(?)

Sniper Rifle. They don't really consider their body or their pleasure expertise a weapon, no matter its potentialities.

9. Hometown and current residence

Grew up in a Coruscanti orphanage, now resides on Nar Shadda.

10. Do they have any markings, piercings or scars?

Aside from their natural Togruta markings, nope, and if they were to get them/had got them in the past, wouldn't hesitate to have them removed.

11. Do they have any notable features, like horns, tails, or so on?

Lekku and Montrals? :'D they are curved in the front so they do catch the eye.

12. Own any pets?

No. They didn't have the position for one for a long time and then never really gotten to it. Probably scared they would do a bad job taking care of one.

13. Have any kids?

Nope.

14. Can they cook? Can they bake?

They can't really, no. :'3 they can manage a survivalist meal but they essentially rely on other to get food.

15. Can they sing? Can they dance?

They can't really sing, but it's not a passion of their so they never really did any practice worth of it. They can dance, but only a selection of simple things, essentially for their job. They don't mind dancing casually, and are pretty good at it. At least, they are pretty to look at doing so.

16. Can they drive?

They can, they shouldn't, but they can. :'D

17. Can they fight?

They are better at ranged combat, but they can throw a hell of a fight nonetheless.

18. Have any special keepsakes?

I'm not sure if they have anything of Mikawlas, or even of their orphanage life.. they spent too much time on the street, if they managed to salvage something during those years it would certainly be a precious possession for them.

Interests

19. Hobbies

Taking care of themself with beauty products or with a mani-pedi is a luxury they couldn't afford for a long time and it does marvels to their mood so they indulge in gladly it when they have some me time. Also they have a sometimes strained relationship with their looks, so making themself pretty makes them happy. Aside from that they like simple pad games, to run and spend some time in shooting ranges.

20. Clothing/Aesthetic

They like shiny, they like precious fabrics, gold, their heels, shorts, skirts and dresses, some fashionable frills and classy, eye-catching outfits.

21. Fave food(s) and drink(s)

They like experimental foods, jellies and escargots the most probably. If they could only drink vodka and lemon sprite they would. Also champagne.

22. Fave Color

Rose Gold.

23. Fave Genre

Detective/crime stories.

24. Fave Season

They haven't experienced much of those, living mostly in ecumenopolises, so, if it's not artificial weather they probably would have complaints one way or another. Something temperate I suppose, late spring.

25. City or Country?

City.

26. Guilty Pleasure

Aside from sex? Mhn. The thrill of the hunt, maybe. But both of those things have been incorporated in jobs for a long time, so, well, aside from having a particular relationship with both, defining them "guilty" pleasures is complicated. I guess they like being pampered, sexually or not, so there's that.

Storytime

27. What’s their family like? Who’s in it? What’s their relationship with them?

They don't have a family, nor good memories from the orphanage, so, probably the closest they got to family was, first, at Madame's institute, where they really come in touch with a positive collective/community. They started coming in touch with themself and with others in a way that was more than family than ever before. Of course they wanted to rebuild that with the Golden Rose, even if it became with times more "officious" with the number of workers and clients and regulations that came with it. But they do want people to feel safe with the Rose, and want them to feel at least a little bit like family.

28. Are they literate? Did they go to school? How long? What level?

They are literate, and studied at the orphanage until they left, so, they are not very knowledgeable after that. They didn't continue studies, only tried to pick up some decent bases to start being more independent after Madame picked them up. They worked hard to be functional as owner of the Golden Rose, and that's where they are at.

29. What was childhood like?

They weren't very happy at the orphanage, didn't felt like they belonged. It ended up with them running away, so...

30. What was adolescence like?

A mix between rebellious orphanage life, naive Nar Shadda and bling/bling fascination and the basically spoiled, responsibility-free life as a Crime Lord doll. It was.. maybe not as practically formative as it could have, overall.

31. What’s their current main conflict? I'm sorry, I'm getting too stuck with some of those deep© questions, I'm giving them up for now. :'3

32. What steps have they taken to overcome this conflict? see above

33. How have they changed over time?

They became more self-aware, more conscious of themself and their choices. More independent, and such, with a bigger presence, allowing them to also create better and stronger bonds with people. With a helping hand they started shedding all the bad preconceptions they had on their life, even if it really took years and years to come to terms with some truth about themself and their past, but well, they got back on their feet. Now they have a house, they pay bills, they own and handle a host house that oversees many people that Apate wants to protect. So, well, I can't really tell how they changed, cause they didn't, not really. It was still them, all along, but I guess they own themself a bit more every day.

For Fun

34. What’s their room look like right now?

It's a pretty big room, but essentially on the minimalist side. Very clean and shiny, with its marble floors and big window on the High District. It's not cluttered and Apate doesn't spend that much time in it, but when they do they find it more peaceful for it to be essential but pretty and expensive looking in its decor and composition.

35. What are they like as a friend?

Devoted, sometimes harsh and too up-front, but also generous and affectionate.

36. What are they like as a partner?

They haven't had much experience in that field yet, so, maybe, distant, even if not on purpose. They are not really used to the practicality of building ties so ever-present and strong, they are still very much used to deal with things on their own. But very sweet, very tactile, very inquisitive, playful.

37. Do they have any phobias?

Of losing themself in someone's idea of them. Again.

38. Did/do they go anywhere special for vacations?

They haven't taken a vacation in ages, they want to quite bad. Anything different from Nar Shadda would be welcome, but they probably want the pampering vacation treatment. They do have an affinity for water, because of their ex, so maybe somewhere they could swim a bit.

39. Your character walks into a cafe. What do they order?

Everyday something different, they don't like caff but drinks it daily so spicing things up is their way. Now it's usually Terjam that buys caff for them, so they enjoy being surprised.

40. What time do they go to bed, usually?

It depends, the Rose usually "opens" late in the morning and closes later at night, but it depends if there are events or not, and if Apate has plans or not. They are more akin to the night life, and Nar Shadda Never really sleeps, so it's not unusual for them and some friends to have late evening shopping sprees or date nights or such. It will depend on how much work there had been during the day.

41. What’s their morning routine like?

They take their time. They wake up slow and then stretch and drink water and then shower, quick breakfast with either milk/yogurt/sweet cheese and some fruits while listening to radio/the news, and then make up and dressing up and then to the Golden Rose where they take a coffee and some pastries with Terjam before starting work around 10:00.

42. What’s the dumbest thing your character’s done?

Thinking it was a good idea to escape to Nar Shadda with no money or friends or knowledge of the city at the peak of 15 years old.

43. What pokemon would your character be (if they’re already a pokemon/gijinka tell us what they are, and how that’s affected them)?

Zughhh... Tsareena.

44. What’s their pokemon team? Try to pick all 6.

Shiny Goldeen

Gorebyss

Mega Diancie

Mega Altaria

Alola Ninetails

Sylveon

45. Theme song (and a playlist if you’ve got it!)

I don't really have one, ahh… Lady Gaga-ish feelings, but not as "hard".

46. If this character was in a musical, what would their motif be (what kind of instruments do you hear, what’s the tempo, ect).

Mhn, something lively and clear, but with a solid accompaniment, like some piano. Maybe a discrete but deep beat underneath, like almost a techno base.

The Deep Lore™

47. What was this character’s biggest turning point in their life, something that changed them almost completely?

There's been two. One when Mikawlas died, and Apate found themself mourning, furious, hurt and dependent on the little skills they had to survive from there on. The second was when Madame picked them up and helped them detox and then got them back on their way to manage themself independently and redefine boundaries in a way that could better connect them to themself and a thriving comfort zone.

48. What was their lowest point? What was their highest point?

Apate almost lost themself, and skipped many steps of their emotional and practical development growing up in not-so-healthy environments. They never really had a family, they rushed and yet mellowed through their adolescence without any real friends of their age, they suffered a big loss pretty young and then started living off favours and on the street without really a support and foundation to evolve.

Then they got back to their feet, and found their ambitious drive again, and created the Golden Rose and wasn't that just *chef kiss*.

49. What are some themes tied to your character’s story?

Former drug addiction, stunt in personal growth and past trauma being overcome, sex work and its relation to their own sex drive and desire, curiosity and extroversion, sex positivism, grooming, fashion and beauty care.

50. What are some motifs associated with your character?

Unsuspected assassin, Diva, fashion expert, sexy and capable, sass master.

51. What were some inspirations for your character (people, movies, games)?

Mhnhnjnnnn I dunno. There are pieces here and there but.. nothing that flashes in my mind.

52. How are you and your character the same? How are you different?

We like shiny things. They can pull it off.

53. Expectations vs Reality: what did you expect and what did you get with this character?

A character for smutty action, and I kinda got myself into angst but also a more vivacious and free-willed character I expected.

54. What does your character want, and what do they need?

They want the Golden Rose to thrive, they probably need a vacation.

55. What’s your character’s core trait? What’s their best trait? What’s their worst trait? When happens when these all interact with each other? see point 31

56. What’s your overall goal with this character? Will they get a happy ending or will they succumb to their faults?

Same as Illy's point.

#that was so long #aaaah #:'D what a mess #I hope it makes some resemblance of sense #oc : illyrio #oc : Apate #ask : Illyrio #ask : Apate #thank you for the ask(s)#u evil xD #askshivanulegacy

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togetherkru · 6 years ago

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the 100 ask game

tagged by @pendragaryen. Thank you again 😘 , I told you it would take some time ;-). But I did it !!

1. What station on the Ark would you be from?

Farm station... Or Alpha, maybe.

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark?

Hum. Would I get arrested on the Ark ?

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground?

No, probably not.

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..)

A flower I think. Ok it’s a bit difficult, but that would do it for me.

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be?

yeah, just like @pendragaryen Zoe Monroe. Her charachter had such a potential...A wasted potential.

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they?

Bellamy, Clarke, Monty, Octavia, Finn or Raven. It depends on the moment of the mission :D

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to you?

Trishanakru.

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? (example: Octavia=Okteivia…just make it up!)

Um... Well it’s not very convincing, but something like Steifani (??) kom Trishanakru.

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious

Well I found the character interesting : someone who seems to be kind, and good, and sometimes he really was (In Murphy’s Law, when he arrives and protects Charlotte, I found him nice...). BUT, in the end, he was hypocrital and manipulative.

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does?

I'm not sure I would have been so attracted to the chip. I'm pretty down to earth.

11. What character do you relate to most?

Clarke. I like her resilience and her selflessness.

12. What character do you like the least?

Jaha, for sure, even though I loved the actor and his performance. But I find the character of Jaha full of contradictions and cold.

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical)

Something like Harper ? So a leather jacket, jeans probably. And something in the hair.

14. Favorite type of mutant animal?

Phosphorescent butterflies ? Not original, I know.

15. What would your job be on the Ark?

I’m a teacher, and I really appreciated the scenes with Pike on the Ark. So a teacher, probably. A professor of earthly history, lol.

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked?

Nope. I would have fainted.

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive then who would have made the best commander?

I don’t really understand the question. It has to be a nightblood, right ? Do we know many ?

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty?

I’d probably be laughing a lot and I'd sound rather stupid.

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach?

Surely a Bellamy approach.

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone?

Kane definitely. He’s such a good character, who learns from his mistakes.

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis?

I must admit I hope to be on Kane's side. But can we really know without being in a real equivalent situation? Can we really know what the “right” side is ?

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s Ipod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there?

The Ipod. A way to listen to music. Cool.

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint?

tattoos that would look like plants. A vegetable motif. On the arms and the neck.

24. Favorite quote?

Harper’s sentence “everyone dies, Monty. Let’s show them how to live” moves me every-single-time. And I think Clarke (and Bellamy) need to learn how to live (not to “survive”), need to let go. That’s why, I think, it’s a very good summery of the show.

But I also like Kane’s statement: “It’s not to late to choose the right side” (see question 21).

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning?

I would go with Luna or Octavia here. That’s what we saw in the show.

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL OR BC OR BE

Least fave: I don’t really have one. I watch and enjoy the show.

Fave canon: Marper (sigh) and Linctavia (sigh).

Fave non-canon: Raven-Murphy.

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo?

That’s really difficult. Wow.

But I fell in love with a video from @teamhodgins (<3), with the song Chariot (Jacob Lee). I don't think it fits the atmosphere of the show, but it fits Bellarke SO WELL. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiZSIFXAf0E

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time?

With Murphy ??? I’d probably kill myself. Or kill him...

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die?

Like Lincoln ? Sacrificing myself for others ? That would be cool.

Or I would probably have died of some kind of infection as a result of a poorly treated injury. Not a heroic death, then.

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of?

Not a popular opinion, perhaps, but I want to know Echo better.

31. A character you’d bang?

Um. That IS a popular opinion... Bellamy of course. Or Clarke. Or both.

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden?

Definitely Eden.

I’m afraid of Space, and the Bunker ??? Is that even a question ?

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground?

Well I wouldn’t be in the Bunker (question 32).

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits?

Well I wouldn’t be in the Bunker (question 32).

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with?

Aah. I would bond easily with Marper, and with Bellamy, Raven and probably Emori. It would be hard for me with Murphy. I think I could get along with Echo of Season 5..

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself?

Not long.

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do?

hide and observe. Like Clarke, but without the riffle. At least I hope so.

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite?

Diyoza, because, you know, “I like her style”. Least fave: Vincent. So creepy.

39. Would you Spacewalk?

Noooo. Space is far too dangerous.

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat?

Space Algae. But as I said, I wouldn’t be in space. That’s why I wouln’t live long (question 36) LOL.

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it?

I’m a teacher, so I have to be diplomatic. I would negotiate for everyone, of course.

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes?

??? Maybe it’s a little less dangerous with stick thumb drives into bullet holes ? (I can’t even believe I wrote this)

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia?

For the Traitor Who I Love, yes, maybe. That’s hard... But I don’t think there was another solution at this point. I can’t even find something else to do...

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper?

Good question. Even with the Love of my life... a lifetime, it’s very long. So probably cryo.

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet?

Bellamy, Clarke, Raven, Abby. Diyoza too. I like it spicy.

That was fun. Long but fun 😄. I’m tagging (if they didn’t do it already, of course /or if they want to) : @geekyogicheese, @natassakar, @katersann , @emmyisgrey , @yourereallyhere, @bellarkespace , @historyandships , @lameblake and anyone who wants to !

#tag game the 100 #tag game #my answers #the 100 ask game

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dramaworlduk · 6 years ago

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Drama recommendations!

Part 2!!

<-Part 1

11. The Legend Of The Blue Sea

There’s history, mythology, mystery, romance, and comedy- what more could you want?! Heo Joon-jae (Lee Min-ho) is the son of a rich businessman who becomes a handsome and clever con-man after his parents' divorce. Shim Cheong (Jun Ji-hyun) is a mermaid who becomes lost and runs into him. First only sticking by her for material gain, Joon-Jae slowly realises his feelings are a little stronger than that. Their tale is juxtaposed with the parallel story of their Joseon era incarnations, town head Kim Dam-ryeong and the mermaid Se-hwa. Cheong is absolutely adorable as she learns to adapt to human life, and strikes up friendships with some of the strangest people. Joon-Jae is a scumbag with a heart and a tragic past and it is very difficult not to love them both. The added element of mystery with a murderer on the loose and Cheong’s attempt to hide her identity make for a full and intriguing story that you won’t want to take your eyes off of.

Year: 2016

Where Can I Watch?: KissAsian

Episodes: 20, 1hr length

12. Pinocchio

Choi In-Ha (Park Shin-Hye) hiccups every time she lies. Choi Dal-Po’s (Lee Jong-Suk) life was ruined by the lies the media spread about his family. He is adopted by In-Ha’s family and they grow up together, battling back their feelings for each other and the cutthroat business of reporting which they’ve both found themselves pursuing. It explores the value and falldowns of honesty and how the media can be manipulated and faked. Friends->lovers plus lovely family bonds and the importance of empathy. Very good drama, emotive and charming, 100% recommend.

Year: 2014

Where Can I Watch?: Netflix

Episodes: 20, 1hr length

13. The Heirs

This ones a really good one if you’re starting off, as it’s not too heavy or complicated. Kim Tan (Lee Min-Ho), a wealthy heir to a large Korean conglomerate, and Cha Eun-Sang (Park Shin-Hye) meet in America when Eun-Sang goes to visit her sister. After a failed encounter, Kim Tan offers to let Eun-Sang stay with him before she goes back to Korea. Despite being engaged to Yoo Rachel (Kim Ji-won), a fellow heiress, Kim Tan soon falls in love with Eun-sang. When Eun-Sang returns to Korea, Kim Tan also returns. Tan’s ex best friend Choi Young-Do (Kim Woo-Bin) notices Tan’s softspot for the new girl and begins to pursue her too. It explores teenage trials and tribulations in the lives of the rich and the poor, as well as pressures from the adult world.

Year: 2013

Where Can I Watch?: Netflix

Episodes: 20, 1hr length

14. Hymn Of Death

This three-parter channels Titanic with its tragic love story and historical setting. You go into this knowing there will be heartbreak, but it still hurts so much!! It is based on the true story of the tragic romance between Joseon's first soprano Yun Sim-deok (Shin Hye-Sun) and a genius playwright Kim Woo-jin (Lee Jong-Suk). It is heartbreaking to see the two fall for eachother knowing they cannot be together for far too many reasons. It spans a number of years and their love remains strong throughout. The quotes in this from Woo-jin’s real journals are beautiful too and add to the real life story. A must watch, if not for the story, then for Shin Hye-Sun and Lee Jong-Suk’s acting which is fantastic throughout.

Year: 2018

Where Can I Watch?: Netflix

Episodes: 3, 1hr length

15. My Love From Another Star

Alien Do Min-Jun (Kim Soo-Hyun) whose time on earth is nearly up meets Famous actress Cheong Song-Yi (Jun Ji Hyun) as she moves in next-door to him. He finds himself entangled in Song-yi's crazy and unpredictable situations, and finds out that she looks like a young girl he fell in love with in the Joseon era. Song-Yi’s best friend Lee Hee-kyung (Park Hae-jin), is in love with her, but his older brother Lee Jae-kyung (Shin Sung-rok) has a dark secret and will get rid of anyone who finds out about it or gets in his way. This drama can be very intense at times wih the threat of Jae-kyung, but Song-Yi’s sweet, comedic personality serves for some very humourous moments too.

Year: 2014

Where Can I Watch?: Netflix

Episodes: 21, 1hr length

16. W: Two Worlds

Bad boy with a heart of gold?? Comic book world??? Violence and mystery?? Adorable, loyal sidekick?? Badass doctor who can travel between worlds?? LEE JONG SUK LOOKING HOT WITH A GUN?? W has it all. The premise is new and exciting, making for unpredictable plot twists and constant need for questions to be answered. W is a fictional bestselling webtoon in South Korea centering around the dramatic life of Kang Chul (Lee Jong-suk). Authored by Oh Seong-moo (Kim Eui-sung), somewhere along the line W became a living universe. The gap between the two worlds is crossed as Seong-moo's daughter, resident cardiothoracic surgeon Oh Yeon-joo (Han Hyo-joo) gets dragged into the webtoon world and is immediatel faced with saving Kang Chul’s life. Only, Kang Chul wasn’t meant to live. If you do one thing this year it should be to WATCH W. It’ll do you good, I promise.

Year: 2016

Where Can I Watch?: Netflix

Episodes: 16, 1hr length

17. While You Were Sleeping

A girl who sees the future in her dreams, and a seemingly unconnected new neighbour are brought together through a series of events. It is legal drama crossed with fantasy as Jung Jae-Chan (Lee Jong-suk) starts a new job at the prosecutor’s office despite his clumsy, goofy personality. Jae-Chan dreams about an accident which causes much grief and loss, and decides he must try to stop it, and in doing-so his connection with Nam Hong-Joo (Bae Suzy) is strengthened and their relationship blossoms. There are some great dynamics here, not only between Jae-Chan and Hong-Joo, but also with their friend Han Woo-Tak (Jung Hae-in), who begins to dream of the future too after his life is saved, and Choi Dam-Dong (Kim Won-hae) who is a funny but sweet father figure to Jae-Chan as he teaches him the ways of life as a prosecutor. Ruthless lawyer Lee Yu-Beom (Lee Sang-yeob)’s portayal is magnetic and captivating.

Year: 2017

Where Can I Watch?: KissAsian

Episodes: 32, 30min length

18. My ID Is Gangnam Beauty

Afraid of how her peers perceive her, Kang Mi-Rae (Im Soo-hyang) undergoes plastic surgery to stop worrying about her looks before she starts university. However, after a while at university people begin to label her as a ‘Gangnam plastic surgery monster’ as her appearance is a bit too obviously altered. Mi-rae struggles with her concerns of what people think about her, which has followed her around her whole life, in a stark contrast to Do Kyung-seok (Cha Eun-Woo), who does not care what others think. The general message of body positivity isn’t without its flaws, but it brings discussions of insecurity and societal standards to the forefront. The good messaging outweighs the flaws by far and there is also a fair bit of feminism going on, just keep track of Mi-rae’s T-shirt slogans! The relationship between Kyung-seok and Mi-rae is very sweet and shy, and Kyung-seok likes her regardless of what others think. Lighthearted but with an important message.

Year: 2018

Where Can I Watch?: Netflix

Episodes: 16, 1hr length

19. She Was Pretty

Kim Hye-Jin’s (Hwang Jung-eum) childhood friend contacts her years later wishing to reconnect. However, upon meeting Ji Sung-joon (Park Seo-joon) does not recognise her, expecting her to appear like her younger self. Kim Hye-jin was a beautiful girl from a rich family, but after her family's publishing company went bankrupt, she experienced hardships then lost her beauty too. Ji Sung-joon was a shy, unattractive boy, but grows up as a handsome and successful editor. Ashamed to meet her first love and ruin his perception of her, Hye-jin asks her attractive best friend, Min Ha-ri (Go Joon-hee), to act as her once, then make up an excuse to never see Sung-joon again. Things get complicated when Hye-jin is assigned to work at The Most magazine publishing office where Sung-joon is the deputy chief editor. He openly mistreats and belittles her for her clumsy nature, not knowing that she was his real childhood friend. Kim Shin-Hyuk () is the second lead in this and his performace is fantastic. The growth between Sung-joon and Hye-jin is definitely worth watching and messages about beauty resonate well.

Year: 2015

Where Can I Watch?: Netflix

Episodes: 16, 1hr length

20. Thirty But Seventeen

Although there are a fair few emotional moments, this show is still for the most part a light, heartwarming drama with little angst and struggle. Also, there are not really ny plausible second leads to confuse the romance storyline as Yoo Chan (Ahn Hyo-Seop) is Gong Woo-Jin’s (Yang Se-Jong) 19 year old nephew, and Kim Tae-Hyun has very little screen time. I feel this makes it a lot easier to connect to the main couple, who are ADORABLE. They are both still mentally 17, after Woo Seo-Ri (Shin Hye-Sun) was in a coma for 13 years, and Woo-Jin’s PTSD from the accident keeps him stuck on repeat. After waking from her coma, Seo-Ri returns to her old house, unaware that it is now under new ownership in the form of Woo-Jin’s family. There is still a lot of tropey goodness (living together!!), but the story and interactions feel fresh and unique, and the dynamic between Seo-Ri, Woo-Jin, Yoo Chan, and Jennifer (Ye Ji-Won) is enough to keep you watching as it’s so warm and pure. Not to mention the dog Paeng/Deok Gu!! I love them all so much and it’s just the sweetest!

Year: 2018

Where Can I Watch?: KissAsian

Episodes: 32, 30min length

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hellomehlo · 6 years ago

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Get To Know Me Tag!

It me - time for me to answer some questions!

1. what is your full name?: Emily (that’s all I’m gon’ share :D) 2. what are your nicknames?: Em 3. birthday?: november 2nd 4. what is your favorite book series?: A Court of Thorns and Roses series 5. do you believe in aliens or ghosts?: ghosts kinda sorta maybe? 6. who is your favorite author?: Sarah J Maas for ever and ever 7. what is your favorite radio station?: i don’t listen to the radio ha 8. what is your favorite flavor of anything?: Mint - spearmint, peppermint anything is yummmm 9. what word would you often use to describe something great or wonderful?: noice 10. what is your current favorite song?: the entire les miserables 10th anniversary dreamcast soundtrack 11. what is your favorite word?: yeet 12. what was the last song you listened to?: Prologue from Les Mis 10th Anniversary dreamcast soundtrack 13. what tv show would you recommend for everyone to watch?: Brooklyn Nine Nine and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt 14. what is your favorite movie to watch when you’re feeling down?: Barbie movies (don’t judge me pls) 15. do you play video games?: yes 16. what is your biggest fear?: losing someone I love 17. what is your best quality, in your opinion?: uh, I’m optimistic? 18. what is your worst quality, in your opinion?: Perfectionism. 19. do you like cats or dogs better?: Don’t make me pick (but dogs probs) 20. what’s your favorite season?: summer 21. are you in a relationship?: nope. 22. what is something you miss from your childhood?: Being little enough to sit on my dad’s shoulders 23. who is your best friend?: One girl from my dance class - we’re both huuuuge theatre nerds 24. what is your eye color?: blue 25. what is your hair color?: reddish brown 26. who is someone you love? My ma 27. who is someone you trust?: see 26 28. who is someone you think about often?: see 26 29. are you currently excited about/for something?: I get to move interstate for university in a few weeks and I’m v excited 30. what is your biggest obsession?: Musical Theatre 31. what was your favorite tv show as a child?: Hi-5 32. who of the opposite gender can you tell anything to, if anyone?: My dad, I guess 33. are you superstitious?: A bit 34. do you have any unusual phobias?: what counts as unusual tho, idk probably not. Spiders are a pretty normal phobia? 35. do you prefer to be in front of the camera or behind it?: in front of the camera 36. what is your favorite hobby?: singin’ 37. what was the last book you read?: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare 38. what was the last movie you watched?: Moonraker - James Bond 39. what musical instruments do you play, if any?: Piano, Violin, Guitar and Voice 40. what is your favorite animal?: Llamas (duh) 41. what are your top 5 tumblr blogs that you follow?: @gerbits @allieice @darlingimmafangirl @lemonywaffles @suddenlycowplants 42. what superpower do you wish you had?: The ability to manipulate rainbows 43. when and where do you feel most at peace?: On a holiday I went on recently to Indonesia, watching the sun set on a beach 44. what makes you smile?: The Trixie and Katya Show 45. what sports do you play, if any?: I dance :) 46. what is your favorite drink?: fruit smoothies 47. when was the last time you wrote a hand-written letter or note to somebody?: this morning - had to remind my brother to check his phone ‘cause I went out while he was still asleep 48. are you afraid of heights?: I’m not afraid of being up high, but I’m afraid of falling 49. what is your biggest pet peeve?: PEOPLE THAT USE INCORRECT GRAMMAR 50. have you ever been to a concert?: yes 51. are you vegan/vegetarian?: I’m like...a selective vegetarian. 52. when you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?: A pop star, just like Hannah Montana 53. what fictional world would you like to live in?: Either Prythian from ACoTaR, or the Overwatch universe. 54. what is something you worry about?: EVERYTHING 55. are you scared of the dark?: yes 56. do you like to sing?: I do indeedy 57. have you ever skipped school?: Never by choice - but doctors and dentists love scheduling appointments in the middle of the school day grr grr 58. what is your favorite place on the planet?: in a theatre 59. where would you like to live?: Melbourne, or LA (I know it sounds cliche, but like kinda) 60. do you have any pets?: I used to have a fat goldfish but he died, aged 11 years old ;-; 61. are you more of an early bird or night owl?: night owl 62. do you like sunrises or sunsets better?: sunset 63. do you know how to drive?: Well I can legally and physically drive a car, but uh - I’ve been too busy in life to take my test, so I guess I’ll be on my Learner’s forever -_- 64. do you prefer earbuds or headphones?: depends on my mood 65. have you ever had braces?: yeaaaah, back in middle school 66. what is your favorite genre of music?: MUSICAL THEATRE 67. who is your hero?: my mum 68. do you read comic books?: no 69. what makes you the most angry?: PEOPLE USING BAD GRAMMAR 70. do you prefer to read on an electronic device or a real book?: real book 71. what is your favorite subject in school?: music, or the school musical 72. do you have any siblings?: yeh, one younger brother 73. what was the last thing you bought?: Online: a phone case that says ‘oh honey’ on the back (Trixie Mattel where u @ gurlllll) IRL: Oats 74. how tall are you?: 5′7 75. can you cook?: not to save my life, but I need to learn before i move away fml 76. what are three things that you love?: musical theatre, RuPaul’s Drag Race and Overwatch 77. what are three things that you hate?: stress, homophobia, the fact that they cancelled Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt after 4 seasons ;-; 78. do you have more female friends or male friends?: female 79. what is your sexual orientation?: straight/heterosexual 80. where do you currently live?: Australiaaaaaa 81. who was the last person you texted?: My group of theatre nerd friends 82. when was the last night you cried?: like a week ago when I went to a production of Les Mis starring heaps of my friends and I was so proud I cried 83. who is your favorite youtuber?: vixella/heyimbee 84. do you like to take selfies?: yeah! 85. what is your favorite app?: snapchat, youtube or netflix, can’t pick. 86. what is your relationship with your parent(s) like?: my mom is the best, and so is my dad! 87. what is your favorite foreign accent?: American, but that’s cause I have to use one for just about every musical I’m in 88. what is a place that you’ve never been to, but want to visit?: HARRY POTTER WORLD IN LA 89. what is your favorite number?: 8 90. can you juggle?: kinda, but not well enough to brag 91. are you religious?: idk at this point, kinda but not fully idk 92. do you find outer space or the deep ocean to be more interesting?: ocean - space scares me 93. do you consider yourself to be a daredevil?: fuck no 94. are you allergic to anything?: dust 95. can you curl your tongue?: mhm! 96. can you wiggle your ears?: no 97. how often do you admit that you were wrong about something?: I should more often than I do 98. do you prefer the forest or beach?: beach 99. what is your favorite piece of advice that anyone has ever given you?: You do you, girl. 100. are you a good liar?: I think I am, but my friends disagree 101. what is your hogwarts house?: Ravenclaw 102. do you talk to yourself?: yep 103. are you an introvert or extrovert?: ambivert 104. do you keep a journal/diary?: i’ve had one since I was 7, but I only write in it like once every 2 years 105. do you believe in second chances?: depends 106. if you found a wallet full of money on the ground, what would you do?: turn it in 107. do you believe people are capable of change?: yes 108. are you ticklish?: absolutely, but don’t do it 109. have you ever been on a plane?: yeah 110. do you have any piercings?: my ears are pierced 111. what fictional character do you wish was real?: RHYSAND FROM ACOTAR, GIMME GIMME 112. do you have any tattoos?: no, and don’t plan on getting any 113. what is the best decision that you’ve made in your life so far?: moving dance schools 114. do you believe in karma?: yes 115. do you wear glasses/contacts?: no 116. do you want children?: haven’t decided, probably tho 117. who is the smartest person you know?: my teachers 118. what is your most embarrassing memory?: tripping up the stairs onto a stage on my way to receive an award 119. have you ever pulled an all-nighter?: no 120. what color are most of your clothes?: navy blue, burgundy, black 121. do you like adventures?: sometimes 122. have you ever been on tv?: i’ve appeared on the news in advertisments for musicals I’m in, but I’ve never been interviewed ;-; 123. how old are you?: 18 124. what is your favorite quote?: “fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times...you’re a fucking idiot, change off widowmaker, I don’t wanna be sniped anymore.” - Muselk 125. do you prefer sweet or savory foods?: savoury

#non sims #hoooo boy this took me so long #enjoy

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darkling-er · 6 years ago

Text

Hope’s Savior ( John Seed x OC ) | Part 16

Summary: Trinity-Hope Johnson finds herself in the middle of a holy war, leading the Resistance, while having a complicated relationship with one of the cult’s herald. And she thought her first case would be easy. Oh how wrong she was!

Pairings: John Seed/Fem!Deputy, John Seed/OC, Earl Whitehorse & OC ( uncle&niece ), Joseph Seed/Fem!Deputy ( kind of ), might add more later

Warnings: mild language, violence, eventually smut, masturbation, oral sex, you know guys the usual, use of drugs ( bliss and other, thanks to Sharky ), fluff ( does that even need a warning? ), manipulation, angst, mention of mental illness ( insomnia, depression ), mention of child abuse ( from John’s side ), torture, I think that’s it? I swear it’s not so bad!

Word Counter: 5951

Notes: So basically from now on I’ll make Hope suffer, because I’m a terrible person, hahaha.

She’s back there again. The burned up place. Ash and fire everywhere, smoke and destruction covering the whole County, the whole world. She’s in the car again, just like the first time she was set in this place. But as always, she doesn’t know it’s just a dream... Or is it?

It feels so real for her, the smell of burned flesh filling her nose. She tries to start the car as burning trees fall down next to her to the ground, she wants to get away from this place, but she can’t. The car won’t start.

Then she tries for the door, but it’s locked. She’s banging on the window, trying to break the glass. But instead of the thud sound a car’s window should make it’s metal banging. She looks at it confused, banging her fist into it.

“You know there’s no way out, Deputy.”

Joseph Seed says from behind her. But the scenery changes as she turns her back to the window. It being a metal door now, she’s standing on top of the stairs. Joseph Seed, without his shirt standing below her. But he has the high ground. He rules the place, his posture being so royal and demanding, like he owns the place. Like he owns her.

She feels small and confused, trembling body pressed against the metal door. It’s a bunker... Dutch’s bunker!

“W..Why are we here?” She asks, voice cracking from the fear.

Joseph tilts his head in question, then he smiles. God, it scares the living hell out of her. An approving him leaves his mouth as he slowly starts walking up towards her.

“You’re trying to forget... But you can’t escape this place, my child. It’s only us now, there’s nothing out there. Come here.”

She shivers, scared of the man approaching her. He doesn’t have any weapons, but he doesn’t need to have one at him. He’s scary as it is.

His voice is smooth, but mocking, a combination of those things being perfect for a creepy man.

He holds his hand out towards her, but she creeps away to the corner of the walls. This seems to anger him, his hand becoming a fist as he slams the wall next to her head, body pressing against hers, face coming close to hers. She turns her head crying like a child. Trembling under the man. Joseph leans his head to her ear, his teeth grinding together, his voice poisoned with venom.

“There’s no point in fighting, Deputy. This is your fault. You brought us here, no one else.”

He grabs her jaw forcefully, making her to look at him. His eyes burn with hatred and disgust. He spits his words out to her:

“I don’t care if you want this or not... This is the will of God. The Voice wants me to help you. And that’s what I’ll do.”

He holds her face in both of his hands, thumbs below her eyes.

“I’ll make you see.”

Then he pushes his thumbs against her eyes.

Hope wakes up, sweating, screaming from the pain and the fear. She can’t see anything as her eyes are still closed, but she thinks it’s because Joseph is blinding her.

“Woah, woah! Wake up!” A voice says from above her.

Hope opens her eyes widely, her fight or flight instinct kicking in and she hits the man above her hard. He makes an��‘umf’ sound as he lands on the floor next to the bed.

Hope only now realizes that she’s not in the bunker, but in a bed at the Seed Ranch. And the man, holding his face on the floor that looked a lot like Joseph Seed at first sight is John Seed.

The young woman sits up, breathing heavily, her mind slowly making sense again. And she starts to panic again. John is awake, and we... God, we maked out last night... we slept together... well, not like that, but still...

She looks down at the man, who is still holding his jaw where her fist met him seconds ago. Then he looks up at her, annoyance on his face as he let’s go of his face and pushes himself up from the floor.

His white t-shirt stained with dried blood from yesterday night, when his wound started leaking. His hair crazy messy and... God, he looks so hot with messy hair...

“Well, good morning to you too, Deputy...”

He makes a face that she has to roll her eyes. Great, he hasn’t changed a bit. That’s even a relief. She scoffs and gets out of the blankets, walking toward her jeans on the floor. While she’s not looking John checks her ass out while she’s bending, a smirk on his face appearing, which he doesn’t hide when she turns around to face him. She holds a handcuff in her hand, holding it out to the man.

He raises an eyebrow and his smirk grows, voice seductive.

“Oooh, kinky. You want me to cuff you to the bed, Deputy?”

She makes an annoyed groan as she rolls her eyes, then fakes a sweet smile:

“I want you to cuff yourself, Johnny boy.”

He takes the cuff from her hands, his smug face never leaving him. He clamps one side of the cuff on his wrist and makes a dirty look.

“So you want me to be the sub? I’m used to being the opposite, but for you, my dear, I can adapt.”

She stands her, her hands on her hips and she closes her eyes out of annoyance.

“Oh my god I can’t even...” She murmurs then opens her eyes, voice impatient. “I want you to cuff yourself. Because you are our prisoner. I don’t need you cuffed to the bed, jesus christ...”

His face changes, annoyed and offended as he the other end of the cuff hangs in the air from his cuffed wrist. He raises one eyebrow at her:

“And here I thought we were starting to bond.”

She doesn’t look away or rolls her eyes. Hands still at her hips Hope looks at the man, trying to not show any emotions from the memory of last night. The magic from that moment is lost gone, she knows that they have to forget about that. They need to.

“You thought wrong.” She says in such an emotionless tone he grimaces at her, standing from one leg to another. He looks offended and even a bit hurt as well.

“Yesterday night you seemed to think different.”

He says pointing a finger at her, cuff swinging from his wrist as he does so. His salesman voice and gestures are back as well. Yup, he’s totally the same.

Hope scoffs then looks away, not wanting to look him in the eye. Those fucking eyes, so blue...

“Yeah, well... I took pity on you.” She shrugs, still not looking at the man, just the floor under her feet.

“You?! On me?!” He laughs, his voice higher a pitch. Hope looks up at him now, his face amused, he gestures all around the place with his hands while talking, being as dramatic as possible. “You’re wrong, Deputy. I took pity on you.”

“Excuse me?!” She lets her arms fall to her side, looking offended with a fake laugh and surprised face.

“Yes, you heard it right. You came to the Ranch, eyes red and sad. And I thought I would be kind to you, come and comfort you.” He says it witha smile, like it’s obvious he’s telling the truth.

“Oh, so you climbing on top of me was an act of kindness?” She scoffs with a fake chuckle.

He smirks at her, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, you didn’t seem to have a problem with that. In fact, you seemed to enjoy it.”

He accuses her - with the truth, but she won’t let him win this fight. She feels her cheeks heat up, a blush making it’s way to her face. Her words stutter at first, feeling anxious about what John said to her.

“I...Well... I was feeling down... and you!” She points at his chest, poking at it through his shirt. “You kissed me! So basically you used my weak state against me. You used me!”

It’s not true, but still. He won’t win this fight, not until she can fight back with words. Though they both know and feel that this little argument between them is just a way of dealing with their confused and mixed feelings for each other.

“You kissed me back, Little Miss Wrath.”

He uses her other nickname like it’s his secondary weapon. Planning to rile her up with it, but she won’t let him have it. She fights back, almost screaming at the man:

“I kissed you back, because I took pity on you!” Her words not even being a lie anymore, it’s the truth. Though pity isn’t the best word to describe how she felt for him yesterday night. “You were drunk and drugged and you looked like a fucking lost puppy, of course I took pity on you, Seed!”

She admits her way of seeing him as a lost puppy seems like a point lost against herself. But the man doesn’t catch up on it, breathing heavily, arms going crazy while he talks and gestures toward her. His words being a lose against himself as well.

“What do you think you looked like?! At least I had a good reason to drink! My family thinks I’m dead, because of you! Joseph thinks I let him down. Because of you!”

A frustrated groan comes from the Deputy, feeling attacked by his words. Because he’s in fact right. But that doesn’t mean he’s the only one that lost something from the events of sparing his life. Hope lost her friends.

“Just cuff yourself already!”

She screams at him and he scoffs, making a grimace as he walks toward his wardrobe door.

“Fine!”

Hope worried he might have a weapon there stops him, grabbing on his upperarm. She tries really hard not to get flushed by his muscles.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

He looks at her hand holding him for a second before scoffing and faking a smile:

“I’m going to put some clothes on first... Unless you want to dress me, of course.”

And here he is again. With the teasing flirt, just after they had a fight. Great. She looks at him, trying to figure out if he says the truth or if he’s in fact has a gun in there or something. But she lets him go, then grabs her own pants and starts dressing, expecting him to do the same.

John returns to the room without a shirt, upper body naked and she tries her best to not check him out. He smirks at her and she raises an eyebrow, not knowing what this is all about. But then he raises his hand, holding one of his blue button-up shirts. The one she was wearing when she first slept in his bed. She feels the blush coming back to her face as he asks:

“Is this the one you borrowed from me?”

She tries to sound as normal as possible, but he can see right through her and that really annoys her:

“Yup.” She replies shortly and bites her own lip, anxious as he starts putting it on.

Can he just not? She thinks, already feeling frustrated by the man. But then she looks down at his wound, bandage in a terrible condition.

“Wait!” She says, raising her arms.

He’s ready to button his shirt when she says that, eyebrows raised, not knowing what this is all about. She clears her throat, trying not to be awkward.

“Your bandage needs to be changed.”

She says simply, voice a bit quiet as she avoids his eyes. He opens the door of the bedroom and gestures to her to go first, a stupid grin on his face. She fights the urge to punch him in the face on her way out, both going down the stairs to get the first aid kit from the dining table.

As they walk down, John’s hair still messy, shirt open, Hope still in her shirt that is wrinkled thanks to her sleeping in it, Sharky looks up at them from the table. He’s stuffing pancake into his mouth when they stop before him, well more like stopping before the table and the medkit.

Sharky swallows the bite he took before they stopped before him and he grins:

“So... you two fucked already?”

John seems to get as flushed as she at that. Both looking at each other, before looking at the other way.

“No... Why would you think that?” Hope says as she opens the box, gesturing for John to take a seat at the table.

He gets a chair out, sitting in it so he faces Hope, taking his shirt away from the wound.

“I mean you both look like you had sex or something. And you did leave the room together. And I sure as hell know John wasn’t down here at night, because I woke up, had the urge to pee. Figured he was up with you.”

Hope struggles putting the thread into the needle, but manages after some seconds.

“He also has a cuff on his hand... Just one, sooo... Figured he was into some Fifthy Shades of Grey shit.. cuffs, whips..” Sharky says, but it’s more of a ‘talking to myself monologe’ than anything else.

Hope gets the used bandage off of John’s skin and cleans up the dried blood around his stitches, then changes the wound’s bandages. Just as she does that Sharky comments:

“Also you have a hickey on your neck.”

Hope perks up her head, almost colliding with John’s chin but he moves away in time. She grabs her neck the place Sharky is looking at and though she can’t see from here she remembers where John sucked on her skin last night.

She steps away from John who is clearly satisfied with himself, and Hope murmurs some unpleasent things under her breath before closing the medkit box with a huff:

“You can finish dressing now.” She watches as he does and when John finishes with the last button she grabs his hand and clicks the cuff on him, checking if it’s closed right around his wrists.

Then she lets go and looks at the men at the table.

“You have five minutes to get ready, then we’re leaving.”

This seems to surprise John just as much as Sharky. Her friend looks disappointed a bit, as he whines:

“Oh, man! Really? But why? This place is awesome...”

Hope rolls her eyes as she grabs an apple from the fruit basket on the table, starting to eat it for breakfast. She swallows the bite and says:

“Because we need to move. Put the asshole...” She gestures to John with her head. “...behind bars. Also I need to provoke the Family while they’re angry. And I can’t do that, roaming around with him around the county. And you, seemed to be unable to understand we don’t get drunk and high with our prisoners.”

She says, turning around and Sharky huffs like a pouty child:

“Oh so I can’t have fun, but you almost fuck him?”

Hope takes a deep breath, then exhales, going out the door saying:

“Three minutes!”

Sharky comes out of the Ranch with John not long after. Hope’s pistol in her holster, backpack in the backseat, trying to get any weapons as far away from John as possible. When Sharky opens the backseat door to put John there Hope stops him:

“He sits in front.”

“What? Why?” Sharky asks, offended that he should sit in the backseat.

“Because my weapons are in the back. Also he has cuffs on his hands, if he wanted to he could strangle us to death from behind.” Hope says simply and Sharky pouts like a child again, but opens the front seat door, letting John sit next to the young woman.

When Sharky gets in as well they start driving away from the Ranch. The sky stormy and grey, rain starting to fall on the car as they go.

“So, are we gonna stop at Fall’s End first? I need to buy some upgrades for my baby.” The man reffers to his flamethrower.

Hope’s heart clenches at that, thinking she’s pretty much exiled from the town. If not the whole Valley as it is.

“No.” She says simply, not wanting to discuss the topic further, but Sharky doesn’t get the info through him.

“No, meaning I can’t upgrade my weapon. Or like no, we won’t stop at Fall’s End? At least a quick beer with Mary May? I’m sure she wouldn’t mind--”

Hope turns on the radio, the car blasting peggie music.

“I’m not welcomed at the Valley.”

Hope says earning looks from John from the next seat. But she averts his gaze, looking straight ahead on the road.

“Why? You literally freed the place from peggies and got John on your hands.”

Oh my God, Sharky. Can’t you just let it go? Her hands clench harder around the wheel, knuckles turning white.

“What about your friend, Hudson? I’m sure she would like a visit from you after you freed her an’ everything, right man?”

Don’t cry, don’t cry, god damn it, don’t cry...

“Maybe Liza could check on John’s injury as well... Not like you’re a bad nurse, but still. She’s a doc and everything.”

Hope starts to laugh. She’s on the verge of a mental breakdown, tears falling from her eyes as she looks in the rear view mirror to Sharky.

“Are you kidding me?” She laughs again, more tears rolling down her cheeks. “Sharky first of all. Hudson would probably... no, not probably. Definitely kill me if I would approach her.”

She laughs, looking at the road, feeling all eyes on her, but she doesn’t care at the moment. She turns off the radio which plays ‘Build a Castle’, because the noise annoys her. Only the rain knocking on the car left, with her crying and chuckles.

“I almost killed her, because she tried to blow up the bunker. So yeah, I don’t think she would like a visit from me... And Liza? John took her skin out and I didn’t end his life, don’t fucking think she will patch him up. God, any of the Resistance sees him, he’s dead. We are dead. Because apparently it doesn’t matter what I do...”

She laughs again feeling like she completely lost her mind.

“I free Fall’s End, help people out, get the Jail back, fuck! I started the whole fucking Resistance!” She starts to shout, feeling angry at the whole world. “I did all that. I freed the fucking Valley from John fucking Seed, and what do I get? Hmmm? They feel betrayed. THEY?!”

She laughs, wiping her tears away as they near the end of the Valley, soon entering Faith’s region.

“I get kidnapped, I get fucking drugged, I got a whoooole fucking operation on my brain thanks to Jacob gingerfuck Seed... And they don’t even say ‘thanks’. Nothing. I screw up once and they send me into an exile. That’s what I get. Do they realize I’m a person too? Like I have feelings and thoughts and I’m not just a puppet doing whatever they want me to? No! They fucking don’t realize that! They...” She laughs crying. “They don’t even know my name... So fuck them and fuck everyone else as well.”

She finishes, not knowing what got into her. Yeah, maybe she is Little Miss Wrath. And what if I am?! She breathes heavily, as the men in the car won’t speak. God, even John shut up, that’s great...

Then Sharky leans in his seat, looking at Hope:

“Me too?”

He asks with such a hurt and sad tone Hope feels shitty about herself. She shakes her head, closing her eyes just for a second, smiling sadly at the man.

“No, Sharky.”

She says it in a smooth tone as she gathers herself, building her walls back up, trying to not think how weak she must seem to them. You’re weak.

“Shut up, Jacob...”

She murmurs it under her breath, praying John and Sharky didn’t hear it. They don’t seem to so that’s a relief.

“Good, because you’re like... my best friend... my only friend, really. I love you Po-Po.”

Hope giggles at that, not a maniac laugh like before, but a chuckle from pure joy.

“I love you too.”

Even John seems to try to ease the moment, rolling his eyes and being his asshole self.

“If you two are going to get sappy with me here, I’m going to vomit.”

He scoffs, looking out the window, watching the bliss field as they go by.

“He’s just jealous because you said you loved me and not him.”

Sharky laughs in the back, and earns a groan of annoyance from both John and Hope.

After Hope’s outburst the journey to the Jail is silent, only Sharky’s humming of Disco Inferno and the heavy rain’s sound being heard. They let them in through the gate, parking the truck inside the Jail’s yard.

Virgil, Tracey and Earl being outside, waiting for them. She called them on radio, telling them they were coming. Rain falling down their heads they wait as they get out of the truck.

Some Resistance members getting tense at the sight of John Seed, Virgil seemingly nervous about this, Tracey annoyed and angry, Earl looking cautiously at the Baptist.

Hope doesn’t know what reaction she’ll get from them. She’s terrified of disappointing her uncle, but they all seem calm under these circumstances.

When a couple guys grab John and lead him inside, the man looking back at Hope for a moment, Whitehorse steps closer to Hope, giving her a squeez on her shoulder:

“Nice job, kid! I’m proud of you.”

She didn’t expect this so her heart melts at the words, feeling dangerously close to crying again.

“Yeah, just... not everyone thinks I did the best.” She whispers, looking sadly at the man, faking a small smile.

“Hey, they’ll get softer. Just need some time. They got the worst from John Seed. It was expected. But they’ll come around. Eventually.”

He tries to comfront her, and they all start walking inside, not wanting to get wet out in the rain.

“You didn’t say much on the radio. I guess you feared people might be listening. What’s your plan?”

Earl asks the young woman as the enter the main block. John has been already put into one of the cells, cuffs leaving his body. He doesn’t need those inside.

The kids in the room all looking at the way of the man, Eve, one of the younger girls being especially interested, not fearing to walk closer to the man. All of the others seem scared of him though. It makes sense, most of the kids are orphans, thanks to the Seed family.

They stop at the table. People already refer to it as ‘The War Table’, it being the heart of the Cougars and their plans against the cult. If they were really in the medievals, their Council would be: Earl, Virgil, Tracey and Hope. Plus one Sharky as Hope’s squire.

The Deputy leans on the table, looking down at the map of Hope County.

“Joseph sent us a message, but didn’t seem like he wants to meet yet. So I guess I could... provoke Faith a bit. Anything to get their attention. I want to plan an attack on Joseph as soon as possible. I figured coming here would be a better idea than going to the mountains. I hope Eli can hold on for a little longer, but now with the Valley freed we could spare some men from there to send help to the Militia.”

She points at some interests on the map.

“We have to strike at Faith first though. Had to bring John here, easier to keep him at the Jail, secure from unwanted eyes and attention. You kept him a secret like I asked, right?”

She looks up at her uncle, who nods, his eyes glistening with pride that her niece isn’t all ruined because of the folks at the Valley.

“Good. Gotta keep it that way. He’s our winning card, but we have to be careful when and how to use it. If words get out he’s still alive I bet the whole cult will lead a purge on us all... I hope people in the Valley keep silent about this too. Only the people from the bar know about him, but they being angry at me I don’t kno--”

The sheriff raises his hands, voice calm and comforting:

“Don’t worry, they might be angry. But they’re not stupid.”

Hope nods, only praying for the best from the Valley’s people.

“Alright... so... I’m going to go into a blissfield.”

She says and out loud it sounds more stupid than in her head, getting not amused sounds from all people, even Virgil.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Miss. You know what Faith’s Bliss does to people. It’s too dangerous.”

Even Tracey sounds worried, in her own rude way:

“Yeah, why the hell would you do that anyway?”

Earl being the protective father of Hope nodding in agreement:

“There’s no way I’m agreeing for you to do this. That’s not a plan. That’s suicide.”

Hope sighs, then looks at everyone of them.

“When I got caught up in the Bliss Faith Seed had a meeting with me... Well, call it that. I think if I do it again, she’ll come. Hell, maybe they’ll call Joseph even... If it’s a chance of making them appear then so be it.”

Tracey looks at her:

“But why? I mean getting them riled up, so they come out and we ambush them. I get that. But if you wonder around in the Bliss, going God knows where, how will we ambush them? You have a talk and what happens then?”

Hope smiles, looking up at them:

“And I join the cult.”

There’s silence and all of them start shouting, confused and worried, well Tracey being confused and angry more than worried. Hope expecting this raises her hand, trying to calm them:

“I will pretend that I want to join. Make something up about being sorry for killing John, I don’t know. Will figure that out on the way. I was always a smartass, you know me. Then... if they bring me with them to some place, be a bunker or a.. a compound or something. We’ll have an ambush on them. They will be probably heavily guarded, they will be ready for an attack. I mean, come on, they can’t be that naive to believe I really want to join. I’m not that good of an actor.”

They all seem to calm down, but Virgil asks a question she wanted to explain just now:

“And how will we find you?”

She smiles again:

“Easy, you follow me from afar. Sharky...”

The man looks up, being silent all the way at the meeting.

“Yeah?”

“Your aunt is a pilot, is that correct?”

He smiles, proud of his family.

“Best chopper pilot you’ve ever seen.”

Hope nods in approvement and turns back to the others:

“You’ll follow me from the sky. From the ground, if you can be sneaky about it... Then when you check out the place, you wait for my signal... and you attack.”

Tracey raises her eyebrow:

“Your signal is...?”

Hope grins:

“Oh come on, I’m sure you can hear me from miles when I start a fight.”

They all seem to think about the things she said, some of them actually thinking it through, Earl being conflicted with his emotions toward Hope not approving of the idea:

“How about... we sleep on it, alright? I think you need some break as well. If we do this... And I really hope you back down... Then we have to make the plan working...”

Hope nods, looking around, all of them approving of their steps.

“Alright then... Everyone back to work... Trinity?” Earl says and looks at his niece who raises an eyebrow in question. “I need to talk to you.”

She nods and looks at John, who’s talking to Eve through the bars of his cell.

“Just a second...” She says while approaching the pair.

Hope stands next to Eve, who is rambling about the weather and how nice it’ll be to build a greenhouse for the plants so they don’t freeze in the winter. John surprisingly seeming nice, listening to the kid’s talk.

Hope smiles down at the kid, holding her shoulder gently. Eve looks up at her, smile on her face as she sees the junior deputy:

“You’re Trinity!” She uses her first name, which only Earl does. “The sheriff told me about you. I admire your work here in Hope County. If I grow up, I want to be just like you! I’m Eve Enderby, by the way.”

She holds her hand out and Hope shakes it. She doesn’t know if it’s good a kid wants to be just like her. Probably the murder part not being a great role model to a child.

“Umm.. thanks? It’s nice to meet you too.”

Eve looks at her then John and smiles:

“You probably came to talk to him. You both have that look in your eyes...” She says, and Hope is taken aback, not knowing what she means. “Don’t worry, he doesn’t get it either.” What the.. what is she a... “And no, I’m not a telepath.”

The kid sighs with a smile and walks away, sounding all knowing:

“Why are all adults weird around their crushes...”

Hope looks at the girl walking toward Virgil and the junior deputy doesn’t know if she is confused, shocked, curious or ashamed. John Seed my crush? What, no way... she laughs in her head.

“Ooookay, that was weird...” She laughs awkwardly and turns back to John, the man seems to be just as taken aback by the kid as her, then he looks at the junior deputy.

“I know her father.” He says, making a normal conversation and that always makes Hope anxious, never knowing how to act around him when they do this.

“Oh?” She asks, biting her bottom lip a bit, but stops herself when John looks at it. Her memory of him kissing her not a great combination with her trying to talk to the man at the moment. Though the slightest memory of his lemony tasting tongue makes her blood rush to places she doesn’t want it to.

“Thomas Enderby. He was quite a sinner before he became my dear sister, Faith’s lap dog.” He says, with a strange venom in his voice.

Hope tilts her head a bit, looking into his eyes, searching for something, then she calmly asks:

“You don’t like her, do you?”

He raises an eyebrow, his mask builing back up, like he knows she’s trying to read him. But he doesn’t fake smile or gets mocking. He’s curious where she wants to go with this topic:

“Excuse me?”

Hope doesn’t take more than a second to say:

“Faith...”

He sighs, rolling his eyes in annoyance, then looking back at Hope, with a fake smile:

“There were others before her, it’s not easy to... get accustomed to one. Doesn’t mean I don’t like her. She’s my sister.”

Hope searches his eyes, a sympathetic smile appearing on her face:

“You seem jealous, whenever you talk about her. There’s bitterness in your voice when she’s the topic... Also must suck that she’s so close to Joseph, although they barely know each other...”

He wants to make a grimace, she can see the corner of his mouth twitch a bit, but he doesn’t. His voice emotionless as he asks, looking into her eyes, stepping closer to the bars of his cell, as much as he can. Almost the metal being the only thing between them:

“Why would you think that?”

He asks cautiously, and Hope shurgs:

“It’s easy to read you.”

He blinks at that, surprised, a bit of amusement in his eyes, but his face doesn’t change a bit.

“Other people think differently...”

She doesn’t think it through as she says:

“Well, I’m not other people.”

“No, you’re not.” He doesn’t skip a beat and they stop talking, just looking at each other in wonder and amusement. Hope on the other hand worried by her own thoughts and feelings, feeling really tired and overwhelmed by his gaze.

“Trinity?” Earl calls for her from the end of the room, making her break the magic between her and the Seed.

“Yeah, a minute.” She says before turning back to John, wanting to say what she first had in mind to tell him. But John interrupts her yet unspoken words with a smile on his face, eyebrow raised:

“I thought your name was Hope.”

She looks at him confused, then shakes her head:

“What? Yeah, well it’s both, actually.”

Then she looks at him, thinking it through and takes a step back making a weird face at him:

“I thought you didn’t knew my name...”

He smirks at that, leaning against the bars. I swear to God, how can he be so casual just by doing that... Dude, stop...

“Come now, my dear. You know I had a good talk about you with our mutual friend, Hudson.”

She rolls her eyes, arms locked before her chest.

“Yeah, but I didn’t think you would care enough to ask for my name... Wait... You knew my real name all this time, but you kept calling me ‘Deputy’? Why?”

His smirk grows, being all smug with her, it’s making her crazy.

“We both know you love it when I call you nicknames.”

She scoffs, raising an eyebrow:

“Deputy is not a nickname. It’s a title, jackass.”

He smiles to himself, amused look on his face as he looks down at the young woman.

“I’m a lawyer, sweetheart. It’s not the word that matters. But the way a person uses it.”

Smooth bastard... She thinks and she tries to hide a smile as she shakes her head, but ends up giggling at that. A noise that makes John very proud of himself at the moment.

“Anyway, lawyer boy.” She says. “You’re going to stay here now. Get comfortable, you’re not leaving soon.”

“Trinity!” Comes a bit impatient call from Earl and Hope is ready to go to him, but turns to John before leaving:

“Also... If I were you I would keep it in my pants. My uncle won’t hesitate to shoot you, just saying.” She points at Earl behind her back and John follows her look, actually surprised by the fact he’s her uncle.

“Sheriff Whitehorse? Your uncle?”

She laughs at that, his worried expression being a great entertainment purpose:

“Yeah. And here I thought you had a greaaat conversation with Hudson.”

She shakes her head, leaving the man there by himself as she approaches Earl.

“Yup?” She stands before him and his worried look doesn’t make her comfortable with the situation. Something is up.

“Dutch called me the other day.”

She frowns, worried by the sound of that.

“Did something happen? Do I need to go out and help?”

He shakes his head, eyes worried and heavy with stress.

“Then what? Come on, old man, don’t keep me waiting.” She tries to ease the moment with a bit teasing, but as soon as the man says her smile fades.

“I know about Jacob’s condition on you.”

A/N: Here’s the introduction of my ocs ( Eve is one of them ): link . Also I’m trying my best with John, not sure if I’m good at it or not. Hope it’s not that bad, haha.

Tags: @onl-you , @redaurora17

#hope's savior #trinity-hope johnson #my deputy #john seed x deputy #john seed x female deputy #john seed x oc #far cry 5 fanfiction #far cry fanfiction #fanfiction #fanfic #far cry 5 #my ocs

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aprilestrange · 7 years ago

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Okay, Rant Time.

Alright, the amount of hate towards 2Nu in recent months is getting ridiculous. I know there’s always been 2Nu haters, but since Gorillaz is active again, the animosity is back and bigger than ever. It’s ridiculous. I can understand not liking shipping the bandmates with each other, but 2Nu really gets a lot of flack. And the detractors seriously love throwing terms around without caring, just so they can justify their hatred. It’s comedy fucking GOLD. One thing haters love to call 2Nu is “child grooming.” Do you even know what child grooming actually fucking is? Child grooming is defined as:

The constellation of psychological manipulations and actions taken by a predatory adult, meant to reduce a child’s fears and inhibitions, as a prelude to sexual abuse or exploitation by the predator or his/her associates. (thefreedictionary.com)

Oprah’s site elaborates on this more:

The grooming sex offender works to separate the victim from peers, typically by engendering in the child a sense that they are special to the child and giving a kind of love to the child that the child needs.

And during research, there are several steps to child grooming in order to get the sexual end result.

Targeting the victim (self explanatory. Most commonly look for children who feel isolated, emotionally needy, or have low self confidence)

Gaining the child’s trust (watching and gathering information on the child so they can know how to approach the child and lower their guard. The predator has to be slick and not act in a way to gain suspicion by the parents/guardians)

Filling a need (such as gifts, extra attention, etc.)

Isolating the child (constantly trying to create situations in which the predator can be alone with the victim. This in turn makes the connection stronger and the child trusts the abuser more. It can be even more reinforced when an offender cultivates a sense in thechildthat they are loved or appreciated in a way nobody else provides the child)

Sexualizing the relationship (going slowly by taking advantage of a child’s curiosity and then advance the sexual encounters the more time that passes. Through this, they make the child become a sexual being)

Maintaining control (the usual threats if the child tries to withdraw from the relationship. The child will by now be so afraid of losing their special relationship they’ll become docile in order to keep their abuser close to them.

Now, going over all of these points, does that really sound like something 2-D would do? Hell no! Child grooming is a drawn out process that not just anybody can pull off. It is INTENTIONALLY done. It requires quite a bit of planning and is a process that can take months to plan before execution. Now, no offense to 2-D, but he’s not exactly…smart enough to pull off something atrocious like this. 2-D is an adorkable goofball and he would never do something like this. Especially not to Noodle. Now, child grooming sounds more like something Murdoc would do if he were a pedophile. He seems the type to do something like that (and no, I’m not calling Nudoc pedophilia, either, I’m just saying. Out of the two of them, child grooming sounds more like something Murdoc would do rather than 2-D because he’s really despicable).

Another term 2Nu haters just love to throw around carelessly (and this applies to any fandom towards ships that have age gaps) is pedophilia. “Oh, you can’t ship 2Nu! It’s pedophilia!!!!!!1 1 ONE!!!!!” ….lolk. Do you people know what pedophilia ACTUALLY means? Hold that thought, it probably doesn’t mean what you think it means. Pedophilia is actually defined as:

An ongoing sexual attraction to pre-pubertal children…the fantasy or act of sexual activity with children who are generally age 13 or younger. (Psychology Today)

Now, again, does that sound like 2-D? Again: HELL NO. I don’t see how people continue to call 2Nu pedophilia to this very day when, in CANON, Noodle is almost THIRTY FUCKING YEARS OLD. I don’t think that a 39 year old being with a 26 (almost 27) year old is pedophilia. Now, if people ship 2Nu in Phase 1 and 2, when Noodle was 10-14 or so respectively, yes THAT can be considered pedophilia, but starting from Phase 3 and now, it’s NOT pedophilia. In Phase 3, Noodle was 20 years old. Phase 4, now, Noodle is about 26 years old. And in the UK, the age of adulthood is 18. So since in Phase 3, Noodle is 20, I don’t see how that can still be called pedophilia. And truth be told, I don’t see much fanart of Phase 1 or 2 2Nu. The few pieces that are around, it’s mostly just unrequited crushes Noodle has towards 2-D, nothing seriously romantic. But even so, quite a lot of Phase 2 2Nu art I’ve seen, the artist deliberately states that Noodle is of age in those pieces. Have you people never heard of aging up a character? I guess not. But I will agree, Pre-Phase 3 2Nu is very wrong. Besides, most 2Nu art that is around and is romantic depict them in Phase 3+. And don’t even get started with the stupid “B-but 2-D and Noodle have a 12 year age gap!!!!” because that shit’s annoying. Yeah, that’s quite a few years in between them, but it’s not that bad. Especially since, as I’ve said before, Noodle is of legal age. And it’s only 12 years between them. It’s not like Noodle is 26 and 2-D is 65 or whatever. Now with Murdoc, he’s many years older than Noodle. He’s literally old enough to be Noodle’s father. 2-D and Noodle’s age gap pales in comparison to the bigger age gap between Noodle and Murdoc. And I honestly don’t see Nudoc getting as much hate as 2Nu. *sighs and shakes head*

Also, “2Nu is abusive!!!” Ummm…LOL. No it isn’t. Never once has 2-D physically, mentally/emotionally, nor sexually abused Noodle and never will, so your argument right there is invalid.

And out of all the Gorillaz ships, 2Nu is the most plausible (in regards to the band members dating each other). It’s not hard to imagine Noodle always having a crush on 2-D. And yeah, you could argue that they’re like siblings, but there are plenty of pairings that are like brother and sister but end up together (aka main guy x main girl in almost every series). It’s honestly not as disturbing as Noodle and Russell. Russell is like a big brother to Noodle and like a father to her. He was the one who REALLY raised her like his own. Murdoc’s like that sleazy older uncle who is addicted to strippers but still cares for Noodle. 2-D is a bit like a brother, but again, it’s not hard to see Noodle having at least a one-sided crush on him after all these years. Also, they seem more like super BFFs than ONLY just like brother/sister. Especially when she reunites with the band in “Rhinestone Eyes.” After being gone for about 5 years or so, I’m sure seeing him again would reawaken her feelings for him and make them even stronger. 2-D could start to view Noodle romantically after all these years, surprised by how well she aged and since she’s physically (and mentally perhaps) a lot different. And sure, 2-D would be freaking out and conflicted at first, but eventually he would get over it and love her back. Besides, even if he didn’t return her feelings, they’re best enough friends to not let something like that come in between them. Their zen bond is stronger than that.

And let’s not forget the official art that’s come out since Humanz came out. There’s one magazine cover that can be taken as romantic with how Noodle is posing with 2-D. Besides, there’s been a lot more art of 2-D and Noodle close to each other in this phase (there were a couple as well back in Plastic Beach, but not as many as there are now with Humanz). It’s nice to see how much closer 2-D and Noodle appear to be in Phase 4. And honestly, it isn’t hard to imagine someone not into Gorillaz mistaking these images implying the two are together.

It’s hilarious how haters are all “LOL friendship goals!!!” but if it’s Noodle next to Murdoc or something, it’s deemed “CANON LOLZ.” Seriously. Ah well, I’m also a victim of rose-tinted shipping goggles for other pairings myself, so I can’t judge too hard. *shrugs* Also, quit getting super peeved when someone likens “To Binge” or any song from Plastic Beach to 2Nu. Let people do whatever they want. If someone thinks “To Binge,” or “Broken,” is a 2Nu theme, then for crying out loud, let them think that! That also goes for “She’s My Collar,” too. Stop giving people shit because they’re “not understanding the song’s real meaning/message!” or whatever.

So, in short, those are my defenses to the two biggest anti 2Nu arguments that I see everywhere, and then some. Now, it’s fine to not ship 2Nu, but you really shouldn’t cross-tag into the pro 2Nu tag and start attacking anyone and everyone that ships it. It doesn’t make you look any better, really. And that goes for any other Gorillaz pairing. If you don’t like a pairing, that’s fine, just don’t go all ballistic when you see your NOTP. And seriously, stop cross tagging. It’s seriously irritating and makes you look like a huge asshat. Stop ruining the fun for shippers and everyone else. Stop causing fucking drama. This isn’t the SU (or insert other insanely dramatic, toxic fanbase here) fandom for crying out loud! Also, holy crap, Noodle is almost 27, let her get fucking romance already! Stop treating Noodle like she’s still that little 10-year-old girl.

TL;DR: Let people ship whatever the fuck they want in the Gorillaz fandom and stop giving them shit for liking said pairing. Especially 2Nu. Seriously, stop trying to start shit.

ALSO, stop calling 2Nu shippers pedophiles. None of us are. You motherfuckers literally made somebody suicidal because of the petty name calling. Fuck you.

#2nu #pro 2nu #2d x noodle #seriously stop it #god this was a pain in the ass to post #i had to restart my computer 30 or so times #because firefox and the internet hate my computer #and kept freezing every couple seconds for about twenty mins each time #2nu defense post #i am only gonna post this into the 2nu tag #because haters are obsessed with this tag

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firstumcschenectady · 5 years ago

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“The Work of the Kindom” based on Matthew 5:13-20 and Isaiah 58:1-12

I often hear it said, “Like a fish in water,” reflecting the idea that a fish isn't aware of water, which is meant to help us notice our own contexts. During a wonderful and life giving conversation with a person from a FAR more conservative Christian upbringing, that person said to me, “Your Christianity sounds exhausting.” I was unclear about the meaning of that and asked about it. The person replied, “All I have to do to be right with God is profess my belief in the right things and then trust that all is as God wills it to be. But you think that you are responsible along with God, so you think you have to fix all the things that are broken, and so you never get a break as long as the world is still broken.” I sat with that for a minute and then admitted, “Yes, it is exhausting.”

I hadn't seen it until it was pointed out to me though, and I remain very grateful for that conversation and that person's willingness to be in those conversations with me.

As much as I adore Isaiah, and as much as I adore Isaiah for passages like this, the temptation towards exhaustion is certainly raised. Walter Bruggemann1 does wonderful work with this passage, pointing out that it criticizes “feel good worship” that doesn't lead to action, worship done to manipulate God, worship without humane economic practices, and a lack of neighborliness. Three things are asked of God-worshippers: “(a) shared bread, (b) shared houses, and (c) shared clothing.”2 Food, shelter, and clothing being imperative for life, worshippers of God are to see those who are struggling as beloved members of their own families and provide for them.

Doris Clark told me once about her childhood in rural Western NY. Her family, like all the other families around, lived on a small family farm. Their lives were sustainable, but not wealth producing. One of the nearby families was impoverished because they'd had many children and the resources they had didn't stretch far enough for all the mouths they had to feed and bodies they had to clothe. Doris reflected on the fact that her family, like all the other families in the area, shared their excess with that one family and were able to keep them afloat. She also reflected that what had seemed possible with one family out of many, when all were interconnected felt VERY different from responding to poverty and need in this place and era.

That was another fish noticing the water conversation for me. I knew I was overwhelmed by the needs around us, but I hadn't ever experienced anything different in order to be able to make sense of it. As of the last census, more than half the kids in our city live under the poverty rate, and recent administrative changes to social service programs has made that far worse.3 The Schenectady City School Districts puts it this way, 79% of our school children are “economically disadvantaged” which translates to “eligible for free or reduced lunch.”4 On these statistics alone, it feels like a different world than the one Doris grew up in.

And the challenge is that these aren't the only problems we are aware of. Just to put it into perspective, we are aware of gross injustice at our borders, including nearly 70,000 children in cages and deportations of integral members of communities; we are are of gross injustice in our so-called justice system, which has the impact of decimating communities of color with imprisonment, probation, and life-time bans on social service supports for crimes that are committed equally by people of all races; we are aware of a gross injustice to our the youngest members of our society when parents don't have paid leave and aren't able to spend the time with their infants that is needed; we are aware of a raging climate crisis that has one of our continents burning and then flooding at unprecedented levels, seas rising, extreme weather events becoming normal, and mass migration pressing the capacities of nations; we are aware of governmental instability around the world, of dictatorships and wars and genocides.... and I just picked SOME of the big issues floating around us today.

And so when I hear Isaiah speaking for God saying, “Is this not the fast I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house, when you see the naked, to cover them, and not hide yourself from from your own kin?” I admit to some feelings of utter exhaustion, and sometimes even hopelessness. I know God is big, but humanity isn't terribly faithful to God and our problems are ENORMOUS.

So, a person might say, pick one problem, one close to home and work on that! I'm game for that, let's look a childhood poverty in Schenectady? Where does it come from? This one I know the answer to! People who are the caregivers of children in Schenectady don't have enough money. (Mathematical proof complete.)

So, why don't the caregivers of children in Schenectady have enough money? Well, that gets complicated. Some of it is because there aren't enough jobs; some if it is because there aren't enough jobs that pay a living wage; some of it is because people don't have the knowledge, training, or skills to get the jobs that exist; and some of it is because people aren't able to participate in the workforce get so very little money to live off of; some of it could even be because people don't have good skills in financial management. But that's only the beginning.

When we root down deeper in these questions we get to a lot of other issues. Schenectady definitely deals with impoverished people of color being being imprisoned – with the greatest impact being in the African American community, and a person in prison can't make money while in prison and is profoundly impeded from doing so afterwards (not can they get the support they need.) Schenectady City Schools have been underfunded by the state for decades, making it exceptionally difficult to provide the services our students need to thrive, ESPECIALLY given the struggles students have when they grow up in impoverished neighborhoods. This also means that many of our graduates aren't prepared for the job market. We clearly also have struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, which is complicated by drug companies that have decided to make profits off of people's lives. We in this community are deeply impacted by the cost of medical care, which has impoverished many and prevents even more from getting the care they need. We also struggle with old housing stock and a high water table that results in some of the highest asthma rates in the country.

There are also the complicating aspects of poverty – the part where everything in poverty is more expensive: the cost to cash a check without a bank account, bank fees if you don't have a high enough balance, buying things on credit and paying much more with interest, INSANE interest and fees, trying to eat cheaper food and paying for it with health, the pure cost of eviction and then the increased cost of housing after eviction, the increased cost of buying food near one's house when that isn't where the grocery store is but the store is far away and costs too much to get to, the smaller earning power of women – with larger impact when men are imprisoned, the impact of stress on the body and the family, and the list goes on and on.

Right, so everything is intersecting and it isn't easy to change. A few years ago I went to TEDx Albany and heard some great speakers offer wonderful inspirational stories. Most of them that year were about the speaker's intentional work to change the lives of people living in poverty, and that was great! But I was a little horrified to realize that all of them were working on poverty on an individual level. That is, “if I help this person (or these people) in this one small way, it increases the likelihood that they'll be able to get out of poverty.” Excellent, for sure, and a great use of compassion and capacity. What scared me was that no one seemed to be looking at poverty on the larger scale. Because in our society, when one person or family fworks their way out of poverty, someone else falls in.

Our capitalist system depends on there being a lower class and an impoverished class... because all those ways that poverty is expensive are ways that other people are able to make money of of people's suffering.

This isn't new, it isn't news, and it definitely isn't just the USA. One of the things that is most helpful about the gospels for me are that they are based in a very similar economic system, and so the analysis of Jesus is particularly applicable for us today. The context of Isaiah is a little bit more complicated, and that's good too. This passage is from Third Isaiah, reflecting the struggles of the community newly back from exile. So, they were still a vassal state to an external empire, but they also had some freedom, and were trying to rebuild their society. Thus, the normal struggles of “what does justice look like” were relevant for them. During the exile, the people left behind were defenseless and struggled mightily for generations. And, during the exile, the people taken into exile were used as slaves and struggled mightily for generations. That's a hard place to start rebuilding from! And it might be an easy place to become individualistic. After all, everyone has had a hard time, there aren't a lot of resources, it might make sense to gather what you can and share it sparingly.

But also, the people were FREE, and they were REBUILDING, and they were grateful to God for this new era were particularly faithful to their worship and religious rituals. Which is where we find this passage. The people are worshipping, yes, but aren't living out God's values. God's values are ALWAYS for the well-being of the whole, the care for the vulnerable, and the acknowledgment of shared humanity with those who are struggling.

And, yes, sometimes this is really hard, and it is almost always overwhelming. And these problems are big, and complicated. There are three pieces of good news here though: 1. God is on the side of vulnerable, and God is a really really good ally, 2. The Body of Christ works so that if each of us do our part, big changes happen, but we only have to do our small part, 3. The Poor People's Campaign is working on all of this and they're amazing. (Copies of my sermon have the NY state fact sheet attached.)5

Actually, there is a 4th piece of really good news, and this is one I should talk about more. One of the most valuable ways to change the world is to settle into God's love for us. Because when we are TRYING to be lovable, we tend to get really defensive about our errors and then that leads to us judging others to protect ourselves, and things can go downhill quickly. But when we TRUST that God loves us, and also that God has good work for us to do in the world, THEN we can participate in the world as expressions of that love, and things just go far better. As we allow ourselves, and our humanity, and even our weaknesses and failures to be acceptable to ourselves and visible to others, we tend to get better at letting other people be human too. And as we do that, we increase our capacity to see other people as fully human and fully beloved by God – and THEN we have the best possible motivation to work towards bettering the lives of those around us.

So, dear ones of God, I invite you to do what you can do to settle into God's love for you, and also to follow God's will in the world: to create more justice, to break more yokes, and to bring freedom to the oppressed. May God help us all. Amen

1Yep, it is paragraph three and I've now cited Isaiah and Brueggemann. #ProgressivePastorCredentials. Also, if you were wondering, my computer knows how to spell Brueggemann.

2Walter Bruggemann, Isaiah 40-66 (Louisville, KT: Westminster John Knox Press, 1998), 187-189

3https://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Census-Most-Schenectady-kids-live-in-poverty-3925563.php

4http://www.schenectady.k12.ny.us/about_us/district_dashboard/demographics

5https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/New-York-Fact-Sheet.pdf

#Progressive Christianity #Thinking Church #FUMC Schenectady #Schenectady #UMC #Sorry about the UMC #Rev Sara E Baron #Isaiah #brueggemann #Isaiah AND Brueggemann #Poor Peoples Campaign #Exhausting #Break Yokes of Injustice

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